Seasons Change
by MyLuckTookAWalk
Summary: Kyoko is a high school student who has recently suffered the lost of her father. Her mother marries again and moves them both to Tokyo where she will have to adapt and cope with her own problems. Will there be more gain than loss for her, or will she close herself up to everyone she meets, including a certain green-eyed young man who can't seem to keep out of trouble?AU OOC R&R pls
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello, people! Yup there's a new fic XD I couldn't resist! this one just wouldn't leave me alone! It's a High school AU, some people aren't as dead as they're supposed to be *cough* Rick *cough*, there is a bunch of OCs and others are OOC *sneeze* Saena *sneeze* and more cultural inaccuracies than I'd care to admit.

I hope you guys will like it, despite of all things mentioned above!

Thanks a ton to **bboo-berry** for beta reading and editing, I love you angel!

* * *

 **Ch1: A change in surroundings**

 ** _Kyoko's POV_**

As we drove through the busy streets of the city, I had my head leaned against the window. My mother has been "talking me up" all the way from Kyoto. Assurance after assurance, that I will like my new family and that I will fit in just fine in the big city. Little did she know her words only added oil to my burning anxiety.

I blast on my earphones and temporarily lose myself in the world of music. Every song seemed to trigger a bad memory; bring back some sort of remembrance from my recent heartbreak. Lyric after lyric awakens a feeling of nostalgia and a yearning to go back to the place where I had spent all my life. Strange how you understand the music when you're at your lowest point of depression. So, I just stopped the playlist at the third song, now isn't the time to start breaking down. The music stopped just in time to hear my mother's instructions for what I should do when we get there. To my "new home" as she put it.

"Now remember Kyoko, the boys will not judge you no matter what but it wouldn't hurt to make a good first impression." Although she was smiling, I could hear the nervous shake of her voice, she was gripping the steering wheel so hard her knuckles had turned white, while her eyes twitched slightly. "You're beautiful anyway, but I would like you to wear your best dress at dinner tonight. This will be our new life, we might as well start it looking our best, right?"

My "best" dress was a black, above the knee, dress with lace-covered sleeves and collar. It was the dress I wore at my father's funeral. I wanted to voice that out but I refrained from making such a comment. She loved him just as much as I did, and I know that she never completely moved on after his death, new husband and all.

"Right." Was all I could say. I have nothing against this new stepfather of mine. Granted, I have never met the guy but I have no ill feelings towards him. I'm just not in a good place right now. I don't feel like meeting new people when all I want to do is just sleep and cry. Not only that, but this new man brings kids of his own to this marriage. Two boys, 'an elder brother and a younger brother for you Kyoko!' My mom had said excitedly. 'I know you always wanted a sister, but... Well, I'm sure you'll get along greatly with the boys too!'

Right. Like I said, I'm just not in the right mindset to meet new people, let alone a new family.

"Kyoko... I don't know how you feel about all this honey, you don't talk to me anymore. I know this is all overwhelming, but... I hope you know I'm doing this for you as well." She said before she turned to look at me with teary eyes.

"I know mom, I get it. It'll be alright." I assured her, hoping that even though I wasn't convinced of my own words, she at least, would be.

"Right." She let out a long sigh, and I knew that she was exasperated that I didn't say anything else.

I don't mean to make her feel frustrated, it's just that every word I need to say takes such a great effort to let out. I just need more time and space. Maybe another year or so...

* * *

We made it to the house, feeling as drained as we were anxious. Mom was tired from all the driving, I was nervous at the thought of meeting my step father and step brothers. Mom keeps reassuring me that they're all nice and that I don't have to worry. Easy for her to say, she doesn't have to go through the awkward first meeting.

In truth, there was no wedding. Mom's second marriage was almost like a business deal. She met the guy a couple of months ago, at a press conference, and they got along well, then they got married a week ago, at city hall Tokyo. She did tell me about him before, even asked if I wanted to meet him, but I was too caught up in my own issues at the Fuwa's and I honestly wasn't too thrilled about the idea of having another father figure barely a year after my dad's death, so I passed on the 'meet the mom's bf' thing. Now, I'm not sure if that was a good thing after all.

His sons have already met her. She says they were good and polite with her, so that's a relief I guess, she won't be perceived as the evil stepmom or something like that.

Mom's knock on the door brought me out of my musings, not a moment later, a kind looking, middle-aged man opened the door. He smiled warmly at us, gave mom a one-armed hug and looked expectantly at me, in a silent request for introductions.

"Ryouta, this is my daughter, Mogami Kyoko." Mom said, wrapping her arm around my shoulder. "Honey, this is Matsuda Ryouta-san, my husband and your... Stepfather." I found it endearing that she hesitated before saying 'stepfather' but there's no need for her to tiptoe around my feelings, I'm a big girl, I can handle this.

"Nice to meet you, sir." I tried to smile but I'm sure it looked more like a sour grimace than anything remotely close to a smile.

He managed to gracefully beam at me "Now, now Kyoko-chan, no need to be so formal, please call me Ryouta, we are family after all!"

I blushed slightly and I was very grateful that he didn't ask me to refer to him as 'my father'. I guess mom had a chat with him, or maybe he just gets it. Whatever.

He happily ushered us inside, mumbling something about fetching our luggage later.

In the living room, we found two boys standing by the couch. One looked no older than six years old, his eyes widened when he saw my mother and he briskly walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Saena oba-chan!"

My mother gently stroked his hair and told him that she missed him.

The other one looked older than I am, perhaps in his early twenties. Tall, handsome, lean. The more I looked at him, the more I could feel the blush spread up my cheeks.

He smiled, and lazily walked towards us, hands tucked in the pockets of his sweatpants.

"Hello." He said before kissing my mom on the cheek. Whatever it is she did with these boys, it worked like a charm. They obviously love her and I felt a sudden twinge of jealousy at the thought of sharing my mother.

"Kyoko-chan, let me introduce Matsuda Hitoshi and Matsuda Kenzo." He pointed at the older guy then the younger boy as he said their names, respectively. "My mischievous sons; and now, your step brothers."

Hitoshi openly grinned at me, while Kenzo curiously looked at me from his position as he was still glued to my mother. "Boys, this is Mogami Kyoko, your step sister. You better treat her like a princess." Ryouta and my mom chuckled, Hitoshi's smile widened and I could hear Kenzo snort a little. My mom had obviously been talking about my childhood fantasies with these people and I felt embarrassed, to say the least.

"But of course," Hitoshi smiled and bowed with a silly flourish. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance my lady."

He was obviously the teasing type. I glanced at Kenzo and I saw him stick his tongue out at me when no one else was looking. I might have more trouble dealing with him...

"It's nice to meet you. Please take care of me." I said with a stiff bow.

"Why don't you show Kyoko-chan her room, Hitoshi? You brother is obviously planning on monopolizing Saena for a while."

"Sure, why don't I fetch your bags while I'm at it. Can I have the car keys oba-san?"

"Oh, yes!" Mom fished her keys out of her pocket and handed them to Hitoshi with a thank you and we made our way to the car.

"Which are yours?" He asked.

"It's alright, I can carry my own bags," I said, reaching for a duffel bag and a small suitcase.

He gently slapped my hand away. "You heard dad. We can't have you doing the heavy lifting, Princess." He said, smirking at me before letting out a chuckle at the sight of my mortified face. Isn't he a handful?

"Are you always going to tease me, or do you get better with time?" I huffed, surprising even myself with the small outburst. I mean, just half an hour ago, I could barely listen to my mom speak where did I get the energy to sass back?

He looked at me, flabbergasted for a moment before he laughed and ruffled my hair. "That's more like it! I have a feeling we'll be thick as thieves; you and I!"

He snapped the trunk closed and made his way back inside. "Well, move it, princess! You still have to see your royal chambers!"

I watched his back for a moment, shook my head and snorted at my step brother's antics. He was so childish but a little cute too, I guess!

He led the way upstairs and then stopped next to a white door. He turned to look at me as he put his hand on the door knob. I expected another wave of teasing but he smiled softly instead. "We didn't know how to decorate it, dad didn't approve of football wallpaper and a car bed, Crazy as that sounds, I mean who doesn't like car beds?" I grinned and rolled my eyes at him. There it is, almost had me worried there. "So, um, anyway, it looks very plain now but I was ordered to take you shopping tomorrow for paint and sheets and whatever it is girls use to decorate their rooms so... Just think of it as the cake before the icing? Makes sense?" I internally snorted at that.

"Yeah, it's ok. I wasn't planning on decorating anyway." I shrugged. To be honest, I'm not in the mood to decorate or make myself feel at home or anything right now, I don't even know how I want my room to look like.

"Why don't we get you settled first, I'm sure you'll change your mind when I drive you around town tomorrow." He winked and opened the door.

The room was decent, Large enough, clean, good lighting. There was a big bed with plain white sheets next to the window. There wasn't any other piece of furniture and I almost thought I had said that out loud when Hitoshi assured me we'll be shopping for a closet, a vanity table, a cupboard and even one of those fluffy chairs we always see in big summer movies. His words, not mine.

"Here are your things, you'll have the time to unpack once we get you that closet and cupboard." He put my suitcase next to the door and handed over the duffel bag. "Dinner should be ready at six, you can sleep a little meanwhile, or shower? The bathroom's at the end of the hall, you'll have to share that one with me and Kenzo... Dad and ba-san have their own..." He trailed off, looking distractedly around. "Or you can join them downstairs? Or you can join me and Kenzo in the kitchen? I'll be cooking and he'll be helping, well, more like eating half of the ingredients..." He chuckled awkwardly and I decided to have mercy on him, he obviously wants me to be comfortable so I told him I might sleep off the soreness from sitting in the car for hours and the next thing I knew I was alone in the big white room.

Dinner was nice. Hitoshi, I discovered, is a very good cook, everything he made tasted good. He prepared light, well-seasoned dishes and everyone licked their plates clean. I obliged my mom and wore a light gray knitted dress that made me look 'very charming' as Ryoutahad put it.

Hitoshi was his carefree, easygoing self, making funny comments or teasing someone along the meal. Ryouta and mom seemed to be content, they often smiled and had a peaceful look on their faces. Kenzo kept clinging to mom and tried his best to have all her attention to himself, he and I have yet to say a word to each other.

All in all, we had a nice, uneventful evening after I excused myself, I showered and got ready to go to bed until I heard a faint knock on my door. I gave whoever it is permission to come in and Ryouta awkwardly peeked his head through the door. I stood from the bed and looked at him expectantly, he smiled and walked towards me.

"Your mother's tucking Kenzo in." He said with a faint smile and I absent-mindedly nodded. "I just wanted to see if you're all set, for tonight at least?" I was about to answer but he spoke again before I got the chance to say anything. "I know the room might look plain now, but I asked Hitoshi to take you shopping for, erm, stuff to make it feel more like home to you, I would've taken you myself but I thought you'd like someone closer to your age to offer their opinion and I figured it would give you kids a chance to bond." I nodded again and his smile widened. "Kyoko-chan, I know you have been through a lot, your mother told me you were very close to your dad?" I looked down at the mention of my father and braced myself for whatever he was going to say. I couldn't help but feel defensive as soon as my dad was mentioned, it felt like people crossed a line just by saying his name and as irrational as that is, it hurt.

"I don't know how you feel about this, but I want you to know that the moment I married your mother, you became my daughter. that doesn't mean I am trying to take your father's place or anything of the sort, he will always be in your mother's and your hearts just like my late wife will always be in mine and the boys', I only wish to become someone you can trust and that you will see me as someone who will unconditionally love and protect you like the boys have come to see Saena." For all my efforts to detach myself, his words hit hard and I could feel my treacherous tears slide across my cheeks. I felt embarrassed, how could I cry in front of him so easily?

He fumbled his pocket and awkwardly offered me a handkerchief. Sweet, but who still carries handkerchiefs, anyway?

"And speaking of the boys, I want you to know that this is as much as your home now as it's theirs. I know Hitoshi have been very welcoming, he's been very excited at the prospect of having a younger sister, now I know Kenzo might be a little harder to approach, he's used to be the center of attention, and your mother's the only female he's been around for a while now, I know he will probably act spoiled and maybe a little cheeky and I want you to put him in his place when he does. You are his older sister now and he has to show respect, he's a good boy but he needs to have his ears rubbed occasionally." He chuckled and I smiled at the floor. How could I act cold to someone who was putting up so much effort in trying to make me feel welcome?

"Now, I know this is unlikely to happen, but if any of the boys say or do something to upset you, I want you to tell me or your mother immediately, likewise if any of the neighbors or your future classmates bother you, please let us know and we'll make sure it stops."

I knew what he was referring to. Bullying. Mom must have been really worried about that, but she shouldn't have. I'm not the same girl I was back in Kyoto. Dad's death, and ... Other circumstances changed me. I'm stronger now, I can take care of myself.

I nodded all the same and thanked him. He moved to hug me but settled for patting my head in another awkward attempt to comfort me and give some space at the same time.

"If you need anything at all, please tell me...or your mother if it makes you more comfortable." Again, I nodded and looked up at him with a weak, awkward smile.

"Uhm... One last thing before I let you go to bed." He extended his hand and I noticed he had been carrying something this whole time, he was giving me a small, wrapped box. I took it and questioningly looked at him.

"It's a 'Welcome home' gift." He said. "For all the good times to come." I looked at the decorated paper-wrapped box and up at him again.

"Thank you, I didn't bring any-"

"That' alright!" He laughed. "It's not a rite of passage or anything of the sort, I just wanted to give you something, I hope you'll like it, your mom and the boys always say I have the worst taste for presents." We both chuckled at that and I thanked him again.

"Anytime. Good night, kiddo." He said smiling his signature smile. He reached his hand and ruffled my hair and left.

I sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the object in my hand before tearing the paper off of it.

It was a square, wooden alarm clock with a teddy bear sitting on top.

I laughed, marveling at the thing. It really was quite ugly, and that, somehow made it even more endearing.

For all the good times to come, indeed!

* * *

My ugly alarm clock woke me up the next day, and I almost fell off the bed trying to silence it. I slipped on my slippers and it took me a moment to remember where I was. I headed to the bathroom, still sleepy and walked in on Hitoshi who had seemed to be shaving his face. I blushed and made a mental note to myself that I should be knocking from now on since I will be sharing this bathroom with two boys after all.

"Morning, Princess!" He said, then looked at me in the mirror and grinned. "What are you so scandalized about? it could have been worse!" My blush deepened and he chuckled. obviously enjoying my discomfort. "You could've walked in on Kenzo, _pooping_. Now that is horrifying, trust me, been there..."

I snickered and he fully beamed at me before splashing water on his face. He dried his face, threw his towel over his shoulder and turned to leave. "All yours. We leave after breakfast." He said as he walked past me.

I nodded and started my morning routine, this will be a long day.

I put on a pair of dark jeans with a warm, over-sized, woolen shirt and a pair of sneakers, if shopping with Hitoshi will be anything like shopping with mom, I will need to be comfortable.

I found everyone in the kitchen, Hitoshi was stirring something on the stove, Ryouta was putting bread in the toaster, mom and Kenzo were stealing some strawberries from the blender behind Hitoshi's back and I just stood by the door frame for a moment, not sure about what to do.

Ryouta noticed me first. "Good morning, Kyoko-chan!" He said. "I hope you slept well, Hitoshi made some rice but you could have toast instead if you want, have a seat!"

Mom and Kenzo started and took their seats lest they get caught stealing from the still unmixed smoothie.

"Morning sweetie!" She kissed me and Kenzo just looked away, still giving me the silent treatment... Not that I heard him talk to anyone else before, either.

"Alright, everything's done!" Hitoshi exclaimed, he served miso soup with rice and eggs with the toast Ryouta had been making, there was also butter and jam on the table and Hitoshi turned off the blender and set the pitcher in the middle of the table.

"Do you always cook?" I asked, earning everyone's attention.

"I used to before dad met Saena ba-chan, sometimes she cooks when I have late courses at uni."

"Kyoko enjoys cooking too, maybe you two can cook together sometime?" Mom said buttering her toast and smiling at us.

"I'm down with that! what do you think, princess?"

"Sure..." I squirmed at the nickname and the attention, it was still weird no matter how welcoming Ryouta and Hitoshi were.

We ate breakfast, mom and Hitoshi made some small talk, she told me they'd be taking Kenzo to his friend's house on their way to work and Hitoshi asked if we can get them anything. I offered to do the dishes and Ryouta asked Kenzo to help with the drying, which he reluctantly did. I suspected it was another attempt from Ryouta to have me "bond" with his kids but Kenzo wasn't nearly as interested in chatting with me as Hitoshi was.

As he was drying the dishes, one of them slipped through his hands and crashed to the floor.

"Don't move, I'll clean it," I said, looking for the broom.

"I can clean my own mess." Kenzo snapped. I was a bit taken aback at hearing him speak to me for the first time.

"There's glass everywhere, I don't want you to cut yourself," I said, as softly as I could.

"I'm not a baby." He mumbled, fetching a broom and a dustpan.

With an internal sigh, I let him sweep off the shards of glass making sure to watch him, just in case.

When he was done, he got back to his place near the sink and said that we should hurry and finish because he didn't want to be late.

I obliged and we finished cleaning up in silence. If Kenzo wasn't interested in talking, I sure as hell wasn't going to make him.

* * *

"What about this?" Hitoshi said, holding up a pink music box with a ballerina standing in the middle.

"Seriously?"

"What? It's very...princessy." He smirked and wiggled his eyebrows.

"Erm, yeah... I'm not buying that."

He feigned sadness as he put back the box and pouted at me.I arched an eyebrow and he sighed, putting an end to the sad show."Are you going to buy anything at all, princess?"

"Are you going to keep calling me that?"

"Yes. I like it, it sounds cute."

I snorted and walked further down the aisle. There were some nice things but I didn't like anything enough to buy it. I just couldn't see any of those things in my room.

Hitoshi and I chose the furniture from other stores, we got paint, brushes, and even a carpet and some sheets. Now he insisted on getting trinket boxes and frames and whatnot.

"C'mon! maybe some action figures or plushies then?" He said, grabbing me by the wrist and dragging me to a different aisle.

Hitoshi messed around with some teddy bears and dolls and basically, everything that was in the store and regardless of how tired and depressed I was I couldn't help but giggle at his behavior. He was positively wild! Does he ever get tired?

"We should get some lunch! There's a nice restaurant around, I mean the food there is not even half as good as what I make but I'm sure you'll like it."

"Are you always this modest?"

"I like to stay humble most of the time, yes."

"Wow..." My eyes were in danger of rolling out of their sockets the more time I spent around him!

* * *

"So how do you like Tokyo so far?" He said, casually eyeing his menu. I could hear the real question, though, 'How do you like your new family?'

"It's... Overwhelming, more crowded than what I'm used to."

"Is that a bad thing or...?" It was almost amusing watching the blunt and teasing Hitoshi subtly test the waters, but I knew he meant well and I appreciated it.

"It's a _new_ thing. It's different to what I'm used to but it's not necessarily bad." I said with a shrug and I actually believed it. Change might not be so bad.

"Hitoshi!" I turned to get a look at who was calling my step brother, who got up from his seat.

"Rick! Man, long time no see!"

"I know! I was passing by with Kuon and I thought I recognized that ugly face of yours!" The young man beamed at Hitoshi. "I asked him to go first, while I said hi."

Hitoshi smiled and invited his friend to join us. Rick accepts after making sure I was okay with it and Hitoshi remembers his 'manners', as he put it, and introduces us.

"Rick, meet Mogami Kyoko," Hitoshi starts. "Aka, princess,"

"Hey!" At my protest, Rick grins and arches an eyebrow at Hitoshi who's having way too much fun with this.

"Aka, my new baby sister." He laughs at Rick's disappointed expression and punches his shoulder. "See? It's nothing like what you were thinking."

"Maybe Kyoko-chan can help you get a girl." Rick retorts and I snort at this.

"So, you don't have a girlfriend, Nii-san?" I say teasingly without thinking about it.

Hitoshi looks stunned for a moment and the next, he breaks into fake sobs before looking up dramatically. "This is the first time you called me Nii-san."

"We only met yesterday." I deadpan. "And I only called you that jokingly, don't get used to it too fast," I smirk and Rick laughs at that.

"Seems like even your lil' sis can't stand you, Hito!"

My step brother pouts and tries to act upset but it doesn't last too long.

lunchtime is spent with Hitoshi and Rick catching up and trying to outdo each other by telling me the other's most embarrassing moments, it was entertaining and some anecdotes wre so funny I had to put my chopsticks down and stop eating while I laughed.

We were about to order dessert when Rick's phone rings, Hitoshi and I were talking about splitting a chocolate cake when he answers. We're pulled out of our discussion when Rick gets up and yells. "What? Why? Where is he now?" He bites back a curse and shrugs his jacket on before hanging up.

"Hito, man I'm sorry, I gotta run. Kuon got into a fight again," He says, before turning to me. "It was nice meeting you, Kyoko-chan."

I didn't get to say anything as Hitoshi grabbed his own jacket and tells Rick he'll go with him.

"Princess, you can order anything you want," He says as he hands me money to pay the bill. "I'll come back to fetch you but if I take too long, you can take a cab. You know the address, right?"

"No, take me with you, I'll stay in the car," I say, getting up and grabbing my coat.

"Kyoko, fights can get really dangerous!"

"Please?" I say, pleadingly and Hitoshi's expression softens. He probably knows that I don't want to be left alone on my first day out in the city.

"Alright, come on."

Hitoshi drives us to where Rick said the fight took place. The guys get out of the car in a hurry and from what I could see there were several men scattered about, two were doubled over holding their sides, one was limping away, while another was lying unconscious and I prayed it wasn't Rick's friend. Three men were still actively throwing punches at each other...well, it was more like two were ganging up on one. He seemed to have the advantage, though, and I could clearly see him blocking both of their strikes before he threw himself at one of them, Rick grabbed him from behind and threw him behind him as he swung his fist at the other man, while Hitoshi punched the third guy square in the jaw. It didn't take much longer before the two men scurried away, Rick grabbed the other man by the collar and I noticed for the first time that his hair was the most striking shade of blond, he winced when Rick pushed him ahead of him and all three of them walked towards the car.

When they were close enough, I heard Rick tell blondie to go wait in the car, gesturing to one of the vehicles parked behind us and as the younger man limped towards it, he glanced down at me and our eyes met for the briefest moment, I blushed and looked down and I saw him go from the corner of my eye.

He had the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen, and if his striking blond hair wasn't a good enough indicator, his green eyes left no doubt that he was a foreigner.

A foreigner named Kuon. How interesting...

* * *

 **A/N: Soooo, whadaya think?**

 **If you like it enough to want more make sure to tell me, I'm still debating juggling two fics simultaneously, so if this doesn't get a good response I might drop it!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello! So the first chapter was well received! 5 favs, 12 review and 21 follows! I'm humbled! So, yeah I will keep updating this story and I hope you will keep loving it!

Thanks a lot to the beautiful **bboo-berry** for beta reading and editing this chapter! make sure to check out her stories and show her some love!

* * *

 _ **Previously...**_

 _Hitoshi drives us to where Rick said the fight took place. The guys get out of the car in a hurry and from what I could see there were several men scattered about, two were doubled over holding their sides, one was limping away, while another was lying unconscious and I prayed it wasn't Rick's friend. Three men were still actively throwing punches at each other...well, it was more like two were ganging up on one. He seemed to have the advantage, though, and I could clearly see him blocking both of their strikes before he threw himself at one of them, Rick grabbed him from behind and threw him behind him as he swung his fist at the other man, while Hitoshi punched the third guy square in the jaw. It didn't take much longer before the two men scurried away, Rick grabbed the other man by the collar and I noticed for the first time that his hair was the most striking shade of blond, he winced when Rick pushed him ahead of him and all three of them walked towards the car._

 _When they were close enough, I heard Rick tell blondie to go wait in the car, gesturing to one of the vehicles parked behind us and as the younger man limped towards it, he glanced down at me and our eyes met for the briefest moment, I blushed and looked down and I saw him go from the corner of my eye._

 _He had the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen, and if his striking blond hair wasn't a good enough indicator, his green eyes left no doubt that he was a foreigner._

 _A foreigner named Kuon. How interesting..._

* * *

 **Ch2: Going with the flow**

I asked Hitoshi to stop at a drug store on our way back to get ointment and band aids for his bruised knuckles. He refused at first, saying that he didn't want to attract the others' attention. He asked me not to mention what happened today so that they wouldn't worry and I promised to comply, _if_ he lets me treat his cuts. "There are transparent bandages, we can get you some of those, they'll be less noticeable." I argued.

He scowled at me for a moment, then sighed and yielded.

"You don't lose many fights, do you?" He asked and I shrugged making him sigh dramatically.

"I just lost an argument with a- what are you twelve?" He smirked and I knew he was back to being his annoying, teasing self.

"I'm sixteen, thank you very much." I smirked back before adding "What are you? Thirty?"

"Hey! I'm twenty-one! I don't look that old!"

We kept bantering whilst grabbing the medical supplies from the drug store. Hitoshi asked me what I wanted for dinner as he stopped by a grocery store and I offered to make dinner this time. "This way, your hands will heal faster and I can make myself useful." I said.

He hesitated a bit but agreed when I told him mom and Ryouta were more likely to notice his hands if they saw him chop onions in the kitchen.

"Alright, what do you have planned for tonight's menu, princess?"

* * *

My first week in the Matsuda residence went by so fast it was hard to believe.

As my room was being painted and redecorated, I had to share a room with Kenzo. At first, it was awkward because of the constant glaring at me for invading his territory but when I soothed him after he woke up crying from a nightmare one night, he let me be and settled for ignoring me instead. He even mumbled a 'good night' on my last night sleeping over in his room. I'd like to think we're getting closer.

Hitoshi and I seemed to have developed this weird sense of camaraderie after the 'fight' thingy and I started tolerating his teasing and general annoyingness much better. Sometimes, I even laugh at his bad jokes.

Ryouta was everything kind and sweet to me, always making sure I am included in conversations at dinner and constantly asking me about my likes and interests.  
When my room was done being furnished, he bought me a teddy bear in the most blinding shade of pink holding a heart that says 'LOVE ME' and said he thought it looked cute and made him think of me . I grimace every time I look at it, but deep down, my heart melts. Ryouta's father-figure game was strong and he was gaining affection points very fast.

Mom seemed quite pleased with the way things were going, she smiled more and spent less time tip toeing around me and sugar coating her words. It was nice seeing her relax for a change. It's a great change seeing her look at me with an expression other than that of complete heartbreak and sorrow over the orphaned child.

* * *

However, things at school did not go that smoothly.  
Being the transfer student was awkward, it's harder to fit in right in the middle of the school year after groups of friends were established and everyone had already found their place. I was stared at most of the time. People whispered about me and I even heard there was a rumor saying I got expelled from my old school for being a trouble maker which was hilarious because even when I was bullied I never got into a fight in my life.

I sighed as I shut my eyes and rested my forehead on my desk. Since Hitoshi drives me to school before going to uni, I was usually early, if not the first one to arrive to the classroom. I used the free time to review my lessons before class the past mornings, but today, I'm just too tired. It's a good thing it's Friday, I don't think I could've handled one more day without a break.

Tomorrow, I will sleep in. I will take full advantage of those nice new sheets of mine and sleep to my heart's content. Hitoshi said he downloaded an animation movie and asked me and Kenzo to watch it with him tonight and I think I will accept the offer.

The sound of the classroom's door being opened pulled me out of my reverie and the sight of the person walking in made me do a double take.

There, standing by the door, openly staring at me with wide emerald eyes, stood Kuon. Granted, he was all cleaned up: pressed uniform, hair perfectly brushed, face cleanly shaved albeit having a couple of band aids on his left eyebrow and cheekbone, but it was definitely him.

He seemed to recognize me too, he looked away, cleared his throat and murmured a good morning before taking his seat...

My god! his desk's right in front of mine!  
why am I freaking out so much?

An annoying, tiny little voice in my head whispered that maybe it's because of him being tall, lean, gorgeous and the fact that I saw him fight half a dozen men on his own but I made sure to silence it before it turns into something else. No time for hormones now!  
I put my head back on my desk, wrapping my arms around my sides and squeezing the anxiety out of my stomach.

Thank god, it's Friday.

* * *

It didn't take too long for the rest of the class to fill the room and chase that awkward tension from it. Whispers and murmurs let me know that Kuon was suspended for the last four days, which explains why we didn't cross roads until today. I guess someone reported him for that fight, probably someone from the school.  
Even though I knew it was low, I was grateful that the gossip had a new subject. I was getting tired of all the curious looks and whispered theories, to be honest.

The educational part of school wasn't as bad, teachers came and went, each delivering their respective lessons.  
I loved our English teacher, she was enthusiastic and I noticed Kuon was a favorite of hers. I also noticed he was doing particularly well in math, even though he kept a low profile in most of the other subjects. Needless to say, he aced PE... aaaaand I'm watching him more than I should, I know.

But It's the last period and there are ten minutes left before I can go home and I'm sure once I'm there, Hizuri Kuon will be the last thought on my mind.

* * *

Those agonizing ten minutes took forever to go by, I was counting the seconds and I don't think a bell ringing has ever sounded so melodious to my ears.  
I packed my bag, swung it over my shoulder and started walking towards the door when someone tapped my shoulder.

Damn it! I was so close!

I turned around and found Blondie scratching the back of his head, with a sheepish look.

"Can I see your notes, I don't need to borrow them, I'll just take pictures." He held his phone up as if to make sure I believed him.

"I'm new here, I only started taking-"  
"I know, I only need the notes from the last four days." He said, hastily reassuring me.

I held back a sigh as I swung my bag onto my desk. I opened it and produced every notebook I had inside.  
Blondie took his pictures fast enough, thanked me and had the grace to wait for me before leaving the empty classroom. We awkwardly walked together and he coughed before speaking again.

"You were with Hito-Nii last week, right?"

Nii? Are they that close? Well, I suppose they are if Hitoshi didn't hesitate to get into a fist fight for him.

"Yes." I said, curtly.

I didn't know what he wanted, I didn't know how I felt about him. I know for a fact that he could be dangerous but he seemed to behave himself just fine today. He was always alone and he didn't lose his temper even when some of the talk about him was loud enough to reach his ears. He seemed to do well enough at school and he was quiet and most importantly, Hitoshi risked his safety to help him, so I didn't think he was as bad as that fight and getting suspended for four days make him seem to be. I glance at him and he's looking at his feet, frowning.

"Did you get hurt in that fight? I mean, aside from..." I pointed at my eyebrow instead of saying it and he looked surprised.

"A couple of bruised ribs and a twisted wrist, but I'm better now." He half smiled and I nodded.

"Did Hito-Nii get hurt?" He asked, looking concerned.

"I had to argue my way into rubbing ointment on his knuckles but that's pretty much it." I smiled and shook my head at the memory.

"Oh. Thank god." I turned to see him frowning again, we walked in silence for a while before we reached the gates.

"Hey, I know this is a pain, but can you take pictures of what you did on the other subjects? You can ask Hito-Nii to send them to me on messenger and I'd owe you big time." He said, looking at me like a kicked puppy before adding.

"Please?"

Ugh, teenage boys should not be allowed to look like that!

"Uh, sure."  
"Great, thank you so much!" He smiled widely for the first time and I felt myself smile back before I knew it.

"Um, can I walk you home or something? It's getting pretty late and ..." He looked at me expectantly and I shook my head.

"No, it's okay, Hitoshi always picks me up, he gets out of uni half an hour earlier so he's usually waiting just around the corner." I pointed at said corner and he nodded.  
"Alright, then. Have a nice weekend." He says with a tight smile and I wish him the same before we separate.

I find Hitoshi in the car, lost in his phone, so lost in fact that he only sees me when I open the door.

"Oh! Hey, princess!" He grins, pockets his phone and his hand moves for the ignition. "You took longer than usual, I thought you were on cleaning duty or something."

"Yeah, I was asked for my notes by a classmate and I had to wait for him to take pictures." I say casually.

"Oh really? Made a new friend?" Hitoshi pulls from the curb and I remember to put on my seat belt. It gives me time to consider my answer as I fumble with it.

"I don't know if lending him my notes makes us friends." I see him smile and I decide to tell him what happened. "In fact, you know him, it's that Kuon guy you and Rick-san pulled from a fight the other day, he asked me to send him the notes for the other subjects on messenger. He said you two were friends on Facebook, he was suspended for four days you know, that's why I only saw him today." By the time I realized I was rambling, Hitoshi was tightly gripping the steering wheel.

"Toshi? Is something wrong?" I started calling him that when he wouldn't drop the princess thing. He teased me by saying I look like princess peach from Super Mario and I teased back by saying he looks like Yoshi the dinosaur and that's how the nickname was born.

"Oh, yeah, I'm sorry! Go on."

"I was done talking." I look at him with narrowed eyes and he schools his eyes on the road. "What's going on? you looked like you were going to strangle the steering wheel."

"Nothing, I-" He sighs and stops the car before turning to look at me. "…Kuon's a good kid," He starts and looks at me.

"But?"

"But trouble has its way of finding him even when he doesn't ask for it." Hitoshi run a hand through his smooth hair and looks at me again. "Kids bully him for the foreigner blood in him and even though he's a hell of a fighter, things can get dangerous when he's around."

"You're saying that I shouldn't talk to him." I state, my face hardening.  
"I'm saying I don't want you exposed to that kind of thing." He says gently. "Ba-chan told me about the kids giving you a tough time at school in Kyoto, I don't want you to go through that here too because you are friends with Kuon... And I don't want you to get caught up in a dangerous situation in case a fight breaks off when you're hanging together."

"You're friends with him, aren't you?" I say accusingly.  
"Kyoko," I know he's running out of patience when he uses my given name, but I'm not backing off. "I'm older and stronger than you. And as I said, Kuon's a good kid, I have nothing against him. I just don't want you to get hurt, whether physically or from being bullied." That makes me silent for a while.

"He's the first person who spoke to me at school, you know?" I say, in barely a whisper.  
"Wh- Are you having trouble at school, princess?" He brushes my fringe to the side and looks at me with concern-filled eyes.  
"I'm the transfer student, Hitoshi. The new girl. People don't talk to me, they talk _about_ me."  
"But you're a lively and friendly girl, I'm sure you'll make friends very fast."  
"No, I'm not. I only get along with you because you made the effort to pull me in, my behavior with Ryouta Ji-san is clumsy at best and Kenzo only stopped glaring at me like two days ago." I say, with a dejected sigh.

"I couldn't even make friends when I tried back in Kyoto and after dad died, I-" I choke back a sob and I blink to keep my tears from spilling through.  
Hitoshi pulls me into a hug and I gasp loudly.

"My behavior with dad is clumsy sometimes too and it's the same with Ba-chan. Kenzo is a spoiled brat who's jealous because you're a girl and he thinks you'll steal the elders' attention from him but he'll warm up to you with time and as for your old classmates, Ba-chan tells me it's because of that Shotaro kid you used to hang out with."

I let out a muffled chuckle, Sho hates being called by his full name, but I don't tell him that, and I don't tell him that I didn't just hang out with him. I dated him. Sort of. At least, I thought I was.

"And concerning your dad, I'm really sorry princess." Hitoshi rubs my back and squeezes me tighter. "I know what it's like to lose someone that important and I think you should take as much time as you need to grieve."

* * *

"How much longer are you going to stay in there princess! I really need to pee!"

I roll my eyes and sink deeper in the bathtub. "You're a big guy, Toshi, you can hold it in." I smirk to myself and blow on the foam surrounding me.

"I really...Can't!"

"Well, take it to the elders' bathroom they'll be back any minute now but I'm sure you'll manage." If you dare!

"You'll pay for this, princess. Mark my words." He says and a moment later I can hear him dashing through the hall.

The truth is, I was still a little mad at Hitoshi for telling me to keep my distance from Kuon and that was my way of getting back at him. Petty, I know.

He wouldn't let me use his phone to send the notes to Kuon and asked me to add him on Facebook myself, which I found weird since he didn't want me to hang around him but he said Facebook is alright since everyone is friends with everyone there. I believe that was his way of appeasing me.  
I look at my phone, still playing music in its water-proof case, I reach for it and hesitatingly type his name in the search bar.

There's only one Hizuri Kuon with his picture next to the name and I tap to access his profile.  
There are pictures of him and Rick smiling, some have only him and some even have my brother in them. I scroll down his timeline and there are some funny videos, some of my favorite rock songs and a post he was tagged on.  
He didn't seem to write any posts of his own but maybe those were only visible to his friends. I scroll back up and my thumb hovers on the add button but then I change my mind and just type a message.

 _'Hello, it's Mogami Kyoko, you asked me for notes earlier, Hitoshi is busy on his phone and I thought you'd want these asap so I'm sending them instead. Let me know if any of them is blurry or something.'_

Okay, it was a total lie. Toshi wasn't busy on his phone or anything he was just being a pain in the butt, but he didn't need to know that.

I select all the pictures I took earlier and hit send. There! It's over and done with.  
I'm about to put my phone down when the distinct message notification rings.

 _'Thank you so much! I really owe you one!'_ I Read the message coming from the bubble that has his smiling face on it.

I was about to reply and say that he was welcome but he sends me a screen shot of a kitten that looks very familiar and another message.

'Cute lol'

I scroll up in the convo and see that I was the one who sent him that screenshot with the notes and I'm so embarrassed I could die right now.  
I type a quick reply and send it to him.

 _'omg I'm so sorry I must've mistakenly selected it with the other pictures'_  
 _'rofl don't be! I think I could use a kitten or two in my gallery'_

I chuckle at that and hesitate before answering. After all, Hitoshi himself told me to add him. Right?

 _'You seem more like a puppy person'_  
 _'Really? How come? ⊙_⊙'_  
 _'Well you looked like a lost puppy when you asked for notes earlier, so ... e.e'_  
 _'Lmao my mom says I always do that when I want something (/ω＼)'_  
 _'lol so it must be your secret weapon, huh?'_

I don't know how it happened but I didn't notice the time passing until I was shivering from the chilled water. We had been talking for almost an hour and I could hear Kenzo running downstairs, meaning mom and ji-san were also back.

 _'Gotta go! Hitoshi will probably want me to set the table ╥﹏╥'_  
 _'Oh? You guys living together?'_  
 _'lol yeah it was kind of inevitable.'_ I shake my head and chuckle as I drain the tub.  
 _'Alright, Have a nice meal'_  
 _'Thanks, you too!'_  
 _'Gn'_

I frown, he took a long time just to type those two letters but I shake it off.

 _'gn'_

* * *

 **A/N: Kyoko's getting used to her new home and look! and interaction with Kuon! XD Though he does seem a bit odd, right? I wonder why... next chapter will be dedicated to the first one who can guess!**

 **Kris:** I won't drop it, not after all the love you guys have shown, don't worry XD I'm actually overjoyed you like it! thanks for the review!

 **Guest:** THANK YOU! they will keep coming so stay tuned! thanks for reviewing!

 **Guest2:** Well, there you go! I hope it didn't take too long! thank you so much for reviewing!

 **Guest3:** Here you have it! I'm happy to hear that! thank you for reading and leaving a review!


	3. Chapter 3

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello cuties! How is everyone doing? A lot of you guessed right about what I asked in the A/N last time and the fastest would be guest reviewer **Kris!** Well done! As promised this chapter is dedicated to you, I hope you'll enjoy it!

Special thanks to **bboo-berry** who's making sure you guys get these chapters with as little mistakes as possible and adding some nice words to them! Check out her fanfiction page and make sure to be nice, she holds a lot of control on these chapters XD

With all that said, please enjoy!

* * *

 ** _Previously ..._**

 _I don't know how it happened but I didn't notice the time passing until I was shivering from the chilled water. We had been talking for almost an hour and I could hear Kenzo running downstairs, meaning mom and ji-san were also back._

 _'Gotta go! Hitoshi will probably want me to set the table ╥﹏╥'_  
 _'Oh? You guys living together?'_  
 _'lol yeah it was kind of inevitable.' I shake my head and chuckle as I drain the tub._  
 _'Alright, Have a nice meal'_  
 _'Thanks, you too!'_  
 _'Gn'_

 _I frown, he took a long time just to type those two letters but I shake it off._

 _'gn'_

* * *

 **Ch3: the enemy of my enemy is my friend**

Hitoshi and I were baking cookies early in the morning. The house smelled like 'vanilla and warmth' as Ryouta ji-san put it. The man is so sappy it's just adorable.

Kenzo was running around the house fussing about his things, whilst waiting for his friend's mom to pick him up for a play date any moment now, and he was hyper.

"Kenzo, honey don't run down the stairs like that! What if you fall and hurt yourself?" Mom chided as Ryouta helped her into her coat. He was taking her out on a date and they were supposed to spend the entire day out. I know because Toshi kept teasing them, saying they were getting more action than he did. What a brat!

He had plans with friends that afternoon and I had decided to spend the rest of the weekend catching up on some studying so I was going to be home alone for the afternoon. I sigh in relief thinking about the peace and quiet that was awaiting me when everyone leaves.

Hitoshi's voice calling Kenzo to grab some cookies before he goes out makes me jump a little, snapping me out of my daydream.

Kenzo runs in like a little tornado, he grabs the paper bag from Toshi and whirls around to storm back out. Fortune has it that he bumps into the table and drops the floor bag. I watch amusedly as panic flashes in his eyes. He looks down at the mess he made, dejectedly, no doubt upset that he would be late for having to clean it up and it takes all I have, to keep myself from chuckling.

I sigh and decide to take pity on him, putting down the bowl of cookie dough I was mixing on the counter and wiping my hands, I put a hand on his shoulder and he looks up at me, startled at the sudden touch.

"It's alright, you can go. I'll clean it up." I say in the softest voice I can manage. Spoiled or not, Kenzo is still a child. Call it maternal instinct or whatever, but I tend to secretly dote on him even when he is being cheeky with me.

His eyes hesitatingly travel from my face to the flour spilled on the floor and back again.

"Run along now, you'll be late if you don't hurry." I smile, more out of amusement than out of kindness this time and he slightly smiles back with a murmured "thank you" and runs out of the kitchen.

Hitoshi grins at me in that annoying, know-it-all way of his and I ignore him and grab the broom.

"Making friends, eh?" He teases, pulling out yet another batch of cookies from the oven.

"Shut up, Toshi." I mumble and he chuckles at me. I suppose he sees me the way I see Kenzo, a source of fond amusement.

* * *

I silently walk into the drama club, making my way through the props and decor items. Today is my first day here. I would've picked a different club but the drama club was the only one that still accepted new recruits this late in the school year. I'm not sure about acting, but maybe I can make myself useful in decor making, costume sewing, or even script writing. You never know.

Once inside, I look around the different faces, some mumbling their lines, some reading what I suspect to be scripts for a play, and I'm surprised to see a familiar face.

He seems to have seen me as well, he nods at me with a smile and I wave at him.

Who would've thought Hizuri Kuon would be a member of the drama club! This brings a whole new dimension to my view of the guy.

I move forward to look for the club president and as I walk inside the costume room, I bump into someone.

"I'm so sorry."  
"Can't you see where you're going?"

We manage say at the same time. Of course, I was the one apologizing.

I look up to see who it is and I see the most beautiful girl I've met so far. She is tall and thin like a model with long black hair and brilliant eyes. She's glaring at me and I realize I'm staring. God! She must think I'm so rude. Way to go, Kyoko!

"You must be new here, I've never seen you around." She says, crinkling her nose in annoyance. "Watch your steps from now on, and stay out of my w-"

"Knock it off, Senpai." Kuon's deep voice interrupts her. He comes to stand beside me, looking unimpressed. "She already apologized, and besides, it was as much your fault as it was hers."

What is he thinking, getting involved in other people's trouble?! Has he no fear? Well… that has already been established when I watched him fight three guys at once but he can hardly fight his way out of this one!

"Stay out of this, pretty boy! Don't you have someone to punch or something?" She snarls at him making me wince, that was a bit harsh of her but he doesn't seem offended as all he does is smirk at her.

"Glad you think I'm pretty, your frozen highness." He sweeps down into a sarcastic bow, making her huff and stomp away from us.

That was… unexpected.

I turn to him with an inquiring look. "Frozen highness?"

He smiles and puts his hands in his pockets. "That was Kotonami Kanae-Senpai, aka the ice princess, hence..." He shrugs and I bite back a chuckle.

"Well, thank you for your help," I start and he comically bows his head, prompting me to say more. "But, I could've handled it." I really could. After all, I had years of experience with bullies.

"Oh, I have no doubt about that. I was just paying my dues." He says and I tilt my head in confusion, this time, prompting him to say more. "For the notes." He says, smiling at me before he walks back to where he was.

"Well, you didn't have to!" I yell to his back and he waves his hand up without turning back.

* * *

 _A few days later..._

My head was pounding, the constant feeling of nausea and being stabbed repeatedly in my stomach wasn't helping my mood either. I never could handle that time of the month so well and the argument happening three feet away from me was not helping, either. At all.

Kotonami senpai and that spoiled brat Koenji were at it again, this time god knows about what.

It's been a week since I've joined this club and this was a daily occurrence. And it's always Koenji who starts it, poking Kotonami senpai who is usually just minding her business... as menacing as she looks doing it.

What I didn't get, though, was why the ice princess never gave that brat the set down she deserves. Everyone knows she's very capable of dishing it out, but she never does. Kuon told me yesterday that it's because Koenji's dad funds the club's performances and that she has enough influence to get Kotonami kicked out if she wants to.

I don't know how Kotonami senpai can take it, but I just can't anymore.

I stand up, my chair screeching against the floor. I can feel, rather than see the heads turning to watch me as I take the two steps that separate me from the heated argument and with a loud thud, my hand hits the table Kotonami was sitting at. Koenji, who was leaning on it, jumps up and stops mid-sentence, startled out of her speech.

"Will you just knock it off, you obnoxious excuse of a human being?" I snarl.

Yeah… that time of the month always made me extra nasty.

There are a few snorts, some chuckles and some people just gasp at my words. Koenji reddens from head to toe, she stammers and opens her mouth to say something but I don't let her. "From the moment I set foot in this place, all I could see you do is be a huge pain, make trouble, and provoke senpai at every occasion, don't you ever get tired? I'm honestly amazed at how you can manage to listen to the sound of your own voice without wincing every time you talk!"

Yup. Extra nasty.

"You! Don't you know who I am?" She manages to shout, pointing her forefinger at me. "I could get you kicked out of this club, kicked out of the whole school in fact!" Even _I_ can tell that she's bluffing and I'm in no mood to take any shit right now. I lean closer to her, and look her up and down from head to toe before my eyes settle on hers as I whisper. "You just try."

The shiver that shakes her body is my cue and I walk back to where I was, grab my bag and make my way out of the radio-silent room. That felt good!

I brisk walk to the infirmary, hoping the nurse would give me something stronger than ibuprofen for the pain that is now becoming too intense. My mind is so busy that I fail to hear the running footsteps that are following me until their owner touches my shoulder. I turn around to see Kuon panting and smirking at me. "Who are you and what did you do to the new girl?" He says with a boyish grin.

I manage to keep myself from saying something I might regret and settle for an eye roll. "If you're here to talk about what just happened, don't." I tell him and he holds up a manuscript I had been working on before my little outburst. "You forgot this." He says, handing it to me. Great, now I feel like a big jerk!

"Thanks… wasn't paying attention." I murmur sheepishly, having the decency to seem apologetic.

"I get it, I usually forget things behind when I make a dramatic exit too." He sighs wistfully and I laugh at what he said, I can see why he loves acting, he's really good at it.

"Thanks." I say, and I'm sure he knows I mean it for more than him bringing me my script.

"No problem." He smiles handsomely at me.

"So how legit can Koenji's threats be?" I ask nonchalantly, if Kuon noticed the straining of my voice he doesn't show it.

"I'd say you should start packing." That makes my eyes widen in panic for a moment and he chuckles. "I'm kidding. I don't think she'd try to pull anything on you after you almost sucked her soul out earlier." He shakes his head and we settle into a relaxed pace as we walk in the garden. "That was…Wow, remind me to never get on your bad side."

I close my eyes, guilt flooding me as I realize I might've been too harsh on Koenji. If the school's delinquent says he found me scary, I can't even imagine what that daddy's girl must've felt like. "Maybe an apology is in order." I say, absently staring ahead.

"Don't." He says, stopping us in our tracks and shifting to look at me directly in the eye. "What you did back there might be our only chance at peace and quiet, if you take it back now, it'll all be for nothing. Koenji deserved to hear it from someone and I'm sure the rest of the club will only respect you more for being that person, so don't."

I let out a relieved sigh, his words making me think that maybe my hormones giving me a boost of confidence to do what I normally wouldn't do wasn't such a terrible thing after all. He made it sound like I did something for the greater good and it made me feel like less of a jerk.

"Alright. I won't apologize, then." I grin.

"Good. We're there so… I'll see ya."

He turns to go back and I look around me to find that I'm standing next to the infirmary. A deep blush creeps up my neck and I quickly walk inside. What a typical thing for a guy to think a girl lost it because she's on her period!

Not that his assumption was wrong, in this case…

* * *

Everyone did their best to make me feel comfortable that evening. Mom made me her special herbal tea, Hitoshi bought me some heating pads and even Ryouta ji-san bought me ice cream and chocolate.

It was a bit embarrassing being fussed over that much but it made feel much, much better. My mother has always been my only support system around this time of the month, dad being the oblivious man that he was didn't help much. So, the extra attention wasn't all that bad.

I woke up the next morning feeling just slightly sore, but my other symptoms were gone and I could feel my mood was not as irritable as it had been yesterday.

Toshi gave me a ride to school, I managed to focus on the lessons and get through till lunch break. Kuon came to my desk saying there was someone here to see me and that he'd be around if I needed him, which sounded a bit dramatic. Imagine my surprise when I see Kotonami senpai standing by our classroom's door, arms crossed, eyebrows creased and hair flawlessly styled, making more than a few heads turn. It wasn't that unusual for a senior to be in the second years' side of the school, but she usually radiated an aura that made her the center of attention, her mere presence commanded it and I was amazed at that.

I made myself snap out of my trance and I walked towards her. Her eyes went slightly wider as she noticed me and she shifted on her feet, uncrossing her arms to put one hand on her hip as the other flipped her hair.

"Hello, Senpai." I greeted, forcing myself to look as composed as I could.

"Yes, hi, whatever." She waved me off and looked away before meeting my gaze again.

"I wanted to," She started weakly then cleared her throat. "That is, for what you said yesterday..." The hand that was once resting on her hip moved to hold her other arm above the elbow as if to brace herself and she sighed. "What I'm trying to say is, thank you."

My surprise must've been showing on my face because she started talking again, no doubt feeling the need to clarify. "Koenji is a useless, spoiled brat but she does have the influence to at least make one's life a living hell in the club, so dealing with her can be tricky."

"I see." I say, nodding. In fact, I was still ignorant of the reason Kotonami senpai held back from roasting that girl, but I was very aware of the fact that she really enjoyed acting and being in the drama club, so I understood at least why she'd want to hold her tongue. She didn't want to jeopardize what she enjoyed and I respected that.

"Well, you're welcome." I said. "But I did it for myself, so there's no need to thank me. Her voice was really grating on my nerves..." I said as an afterthought.

Kotonami senpai's lips pulled at the corners, if only for a second before she scowled again, flipping her hair, I concluded that that was a nervous gesture of hers. "I know the feeling." She schooled her face back into her usual, cold expression, nodded and started walking away.

Sharing a mutual dislike of the same person made me feel that we shared a weird bond and as she walked away, I -strangely- felt the loss. Truth be told, despite her efforts at being disagreeable, Kotonami-senpai felt more socially awkward than genuinely malicious and I had the ridiculous idea that I wanted to befriend her.  
Hitoshi's encouragements for me to make new friends bounced around my head and I had a sudden rise of courage as I called up to her.

"Senpai!"

She stopped walking and slowly turned back, looking slightly alarmed.

"I'm not sure if you're free but, would you like to hang out after school?" There goes!

She looked at me, dumbfounded for an instant, and then blinked a couple of times. She composed herself again and her eyelids covered half her eyes in that bored expression she so often wore. "Yeah, sure, whatever." She said before turning back and walking away.

Well, that went better than I expected!

"I'll wait for you by the gate!" I shouted and she picked up her pace, walking even faster, no doubt embarrassed by what I just shouted for all the corridor to hear.

I pulled my phone out and texted Hitoshi, telling him that he shouldn't come to pick me up that afternoon and my phone dinged a moment later. He must've texted back.

 _'Going on a date? (¬‿¬)'_

 _'Shut up, Toshi! ಠ╭╮ಠ'_

 _'What should I tell ba-chan if she asks about you?'_

 _'Just tell her I'm hanging out with a friend'_

 _'Are you?:3'_

 _'Yes! God, what is this, a police interrogation?!'_

 _'Big brother's watching you! ┬┴┬┴┤(･_├┬┴┬┴'_

 _'You're such a creep!'_

 _'Lolz Have fun, Princess!_ _(◕‿◕✿)_ _'_

I shake my head and walk down to buy my lunch, I wonder what girls usually do when they go out to have fun?

* * *

Moko-san and I had an enjoyable time together. I started calling Kotonami senpai that when I noticed her saying 'Mo' every time she felt the need to punctuate her annoyance. She protested a bit at the nickname, but then again, she protests about pretty much everything, it's like second nature for her.

We walked around town checking some stores and I found out she has flawless taste and a good eye for sales. We got ice cream and we were just about to go back home when we bumped into my step brother and his friends.

 _well, well, well..._

I wouldn't have been surprised if he were with anyone else but the fact that he was with Rick-san and Kuon was too convenient to be a coincidence. Now I'm not saying that Toshi did it on purpose, but… hold on, no, that's _exactly_ what I'm saying! My overprotective, idiotic step brother had called them to make sure it wasn't Kuon I was hanging out with! The nerve of him!

I had just texted him about the ice cream parlor we were at and he didn't even mention being nearby!

Hitoshi looked startled when he saw me, but a moment later he schooled his face into that mischievous grin of his and waved at us.

Nice try, big brother! We'll see how good that smile does you when we get home!

Moko-san looked at me inquiringly and I whispered to her that that was my step brother. As the three of them approached us, Hitoshi walked towards me and reached out a hand to ruffle my hair. "Having fun, princess?"

Rick-san and Kuon were beside him right away and I bowed in greeting before turning to Moko-san. "Moko-san, meet Matsuda Hitoshi, probably the world's most annoying human being." Hitoshi pouted and Kuon snorted slightly, although if that was at the use of Kanae's nickname or at the insult I just threw at Hitoshi, I couldn't tell. "Hizuri-kun, you already know, and that is Rick-san." I finished before introducing Kanae, I realized that I never found out Rick-san's last name as an afterthought but pushed it to the back of my mind.

"Guys, this is Kotonami Kanae, a senpai from school and my new friend!" Kanae blushed at the enthusiasm in my voice and everyone, but Kuon and I, bowed after the introductions, murmuring "nice to meet you" and "please take care of me".

Hitoshi offered we all walk to the train station together and no one protested, he and Rick talked to Kanae as he swung his arm over my shoulder –probably another attempt to display his stupidity- and making me walk slightly hunched to his side.

Kuon, I noticed, silently fell back, walking with his hands in his pockets and an unreadable expression on his face. We boarded the train and there were no empty seats; so, Rick and I stood in the middle holding onto the hanging straps, Kuon just leaned his head back on a door and closed his eyes, ignoring the rest of us and Kanae and Hitoshi discussed entrance exams by the door on the opposite side, while Rick and I chatted about random stuff, occasionally having to repeat ourselves to make our words heard over the bustling chatter of the other occupants of the train.

Kanae was the first to exit, I said goodbye as the train's mechanical voice announced her stop and she and my stupid brother exchanged awkward smiles. My suspicions were confirmed when my brother's eyes lingered after her even as the train started moving again, I'll have to investigate more about this sudden clumsiness he developed.

Rick went to stand beside Kuon and I went to join them since Toshi was too lost in his own world. "I didn't know you and Senpai were friends." Kuon spoke for the first time since we met outside. His eyes were still closed and he didn't shift from his leaning position.

"Uhm, yeah. When you said she wanted to talk to me this morning, we spoke and I asked her if she wanted to hang out." I answered a bit awkwardly. His only answer was a hum and he went silent again.

Rick seemed to notice this and tried to diffuse the awkwardness. I'm sure the only reason he moved to where Kuon was standing was to include him in our conversation and having him brood silently didn't serve that purpose. "So, you two are in the same class, how random!" He joked lamely and chuckled and I smiled at him. I could see Hitoshi in him sometimes and I find that endearing. Only issue is that I can't exactly sass him back. That would be rude.

"Yeah, she's the one who would lend me her notes after my suspension." Kuon said, not bothering to blink his eyes open to look at us.

"Ohhh, so you're the one he's been going on and on about." Rick smirked and Kuon snapped his eyes open for the sole purpose of glaring at him but it only seemed to push Rick to say more as he turned to me. "You see, Kuon here is not very smooth with the ladies, his last girlfriend dumped him after two hours of dating. That has to be some sort of record!" Kuon's glare turned murderous at his friend's betrayal and I couldn't help the chuckle that escaped me, which only seemed to encourage Rick to speak more. "And the guys usually avoid him, well… the ones who don't try to bully him that is, so he doesn't have many friends at school."

"Rick! will you just shut up!" Kuon hissed in English and I tried to hold back the smile that pulled at the corners of my lips, he was always so smooth, calm and composed at school, seeing him like this was a pleasant change.

"Why do they avoid him?" I asked, glancing curiously at Kuon.

"Why, because they're jealous of course. I mean look at him! He's gorgeous!" I couldn't tell if Rick was still teasing or if he was serious. But he was not wrong, Kuon is gorgeous and I unwittingly let that thought escape me.

"I can't argue with that..." I had still been looking at Kuon when I said that and the raise of his eyebrows alerted me about my absentminded slip-of-tongue, he smirked and I could feel myself blushing a second later.

Oh, my god! Kyoko you're an idiot!

Thankfully, Hitoshi walked toward us and held my hand saying that we're almost at our stop. My step brother never looked the picture of an angel of mercy as he did in that instant! In fact, I forgive him for his little stunt! We said goodbye and when I turned back to look at the two of them one last time, Rick was gently smiling at us while Kuon's smirk was discarded in favor of a frown. He was getting more confusing with time and that bothered me.

* * *

"So how come you didn't hoist me over your shoulder and take me home running when we met you guys earlier? I thought you didn't want me to even look at Kuon." I asked Hitoshi as I dropped on his bed. I tucked my feet under me and made myself comfortable, letting him know I wasn't going anywhere.

He sighed and put down the book he had been reading before I barged inside his room with two mugs of chamomile tea. "It was okay since you were with me and Rick, we could've protected you if anything happened then, princess." Hitoshi said before taking a sip of his tea. "And aren't you being too dramatic? I'm sure even after my ... _Suggestions_ , you still talk to him at school."

I nodded, confirming his suspicions. I never planned to hide it. I had even decided to tell him the truth if he ever asked.

"I see, so it's alright if you're around or if we're in a relatively safe place." I said, pensively watching him for his reaction. He seemed to be okay with it, he didn't have much of a reaction other than a distracted shrug as he blew on his tea. "What about Kanae?" That did it. Toshi choked on his tea a little. He put his mug on the nightstand and... was he blushing?

"What about her?" He finally said after making a show of clearing his throat and idly leaning back on his headboard.

"Is it okay if she's my friend?" I teased and instead of replying with a snarky remark of his own he rolled his eyes at me. It was fun being on the receiving side of that familiar gesture, for once!

"She doesn't get involved in street fights, does she?" He teased back, swallowing back his irritation.

I chuckled and nudged him with my knee. "Come on, I meant to ask what you think about her."

 _Please take the bait, please take the bait, please take the bait!_

He swallowed subtly and his eyes briefly glanced at the door before they refocused on some invisible point behind my head. I'd like to think he didn't just contemplate running out of the room, but I know better.

 _Rude!_

"She seems like a good kid," I audibly snorted at that and quirked an eyebrow. A _kid_? He didn't seem to think of her as a _kid_ earlier. In fact, if any of them looked like a kid, it was him, seeming so eager to please! "And she's the first female friend you've made since you got here, right?"

 _Hah!_

Changing strategies, I see.

I nodded, knowing that he was trying to change the subject and I would have to try a more direct approach.

"So... yeah. I think you two will do well as besties or whatever." He wiggled his eyebrows at me with a grin and I sipped from my mug, narrowing my eyes at him. Does he honestly believe he is fooling anyone?

Fine. You asked for it, nii-san!

"So, you weren't flirting with her earlier?" I bluntly asked, smirking and I thank god, he hadn't been drinking from his mug then because the snort that escaped him at those words was phenomenal an if he had, I would've been drenched.

"Wh- What do you mean, flirting?" I put my mug next to his and crossed my arms as he kept sputtering. "...I... I didn't even... Kyoko!"

I attempted a sad pout. "So, it's Kyoko now? Are you going to start calling _her_ princess from now on?" Hitoshi seemed about to say something but he changed his mind and settled for whacking me with a pillow instead.

"So, you're teasing your big brother now, huh?" He said and moved to whack me again but I was quick to jump off the bed and run to the other side of the room.

"Come oooon! you gotta at least admit she's pretty!" I stuck my tongue out at him and he held up his pillow to throw it at me. I could hear it hit the door as I made my escape. I kept chuckling even as I entered my own room.

This will be fun. I definitely wouldn't mind having Moko-san as a sister in law!

* * *

 **A/N: TaDa! Moko-san is in da house!... ok, that was lame XDDDDD But, yeah! Kanae's here and it seems like she managed to charm Hitoshi on their first meeting! Next chapter will be in Kuon's POV so look forward to that! Your reviews make me write faster, longer chapters so don't hold back!**

 **Kris:** Thank you! Loved your review, as always! nice job guessing why Kuon is so moody! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Again, thank you for your support!

 **Marilia:** Jackpot! You're the second to guess that right, well done! Thanks a lot for reading and reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!

 **Michiyo:** Awww, here's more, I hope you enjoyed it :D Thank you so much for reading and leaving me a review!

 **Guest1:** Lol, why didn't ou say it in the review! Do tell what you think is going on! Thank you so much for the review, I hope this story will keep entertaining you!

 **Mutemuia:** XDDD I know, right? Misunderstandings are always fun lol Thank you so much for reading and for the review!

 **Guest2:** Thank you so much, I'm very happy you enjoy the OCs! and Yes, Kyoko and Kuon are the same age...well, he might be a few months older but they were born on the same year and he wasn't held back! Thanks for the review, I hope you had fun with this chapter!

 **Guest3:** HERE IS THE UPDAT! IS IT GOOD? XDDD lol thank you so much for the enthusiastic review, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

 **Guest4:** Thank you so much for your kind words! I do hope you'll keep enjoying this story!


	4. Chapter 4

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello, darlings! I hope everyone's doing great! Here's the chapter everyone seemed to be so excited about, Kuon's POV! I hope you'll like it, and it will set the way I see Kuon's personality for this fic in place.

Thanks a million to **bboo_berry** for beta reading and editing! The readers thank you too, dear This chapter is dedicated to you!

Without further delay, please enjoy!

 **Warning** : This one has a good amount of _colorful_ words, not bad enough to turn it into an M rated chapter, but there is a good load of curse words, so read at your own risk x)

* * *

 ** _Previously..._**

 _"So, you weren't flirting with her earlier?" I bluntly asked, smirking and I thank god, he hadn't been drinking from his mug then because the snort that escaped him at those words was phenomenal an if he had, I would've been drenched._

 _"Wh- What do you mean, flirting?" I put my mug next to his and crossed my arms as he kept sputtering. "...I... I didn't even... Kyoko!"_

 _I attempted a sad pout. "So, it's Kyoko now? Are you going to start calling her princess from now on?" Hitoshi seemed about to say something but he changed his mind and settled for whacking me with a pillow instead._

 _"So, you're teasing your big brother now, huh?" He said and moved to whack me again but I was quick to jump off the bed and run to the other side of the room._

 _"Come oooon! you gotta at least admit she's pretty!" I stuck my tongue out at him and he held up his pillow to throw it at me. I could hear it hit the door as I made my escape. I kept chuckling even as I entered my own room._

 _This will be fun. I definitely wouldn't mind having Moko-san as a sister in law!_

* * *

 **Ch4: A rather big misunderstanding**

 _ **Kuon's POV**_

Rick asked me to go to his place instead of going home after Hito-Nii and Mogami-san got out of the train. Even though I was still pissed at him for the number he pulled on me earlier, I agreed. After all, if I went home now, all I would be doing is sulking in my room and thinking about her repeatedly. No, that wouldn't do.

We entered his studio, which was as messy as ever. Being an exchange student and living on his own, Rick never cared much about the state of his house. My father wouldn't hesitate before calling it a filthy dump as it was and to be honest, I tended to agree.

Not that I care much, anyway.

I can see the appeal of having your own place and doing whatever you want without having anyone to nag you about it. Sometimes I wish I had the same privilege.

I maneuvered my way through his collection of dirty shirts, empty pizza boxes, and all the text books lying on the floor and took a seat on the couch, which had a couple of empty coke cans thrown on it.

Rick went to his cupboard and grabbed a menu, he ordered takeout before turning on the tv. "Should we watch something or play a game instead?" He asked me, pulling my attention away from the text I had been typing to inform my parents I'd be crashing at his place that night.

"Go for a game. I'm in the mood to kick your butt." If I can't do it for real, might as well do it in game, right?

Halfway through the game –that I was winning- Hito-Nii called Rick making us pause it while they talked and goofed on the phone.

I was quickly getting annoyed at what was going on, it felt like I was in some sort of bad sitcom. Not only did he interrupt our game, Rick was now teasing Hitoshi about Kotonami senpai of all people and _he_ didn't seem to be saying anything to refute his accusations.

How do I know? Rick thought it was a good idea to put him on speaker. It wasn't.

Was this some sort of joke to them?

Here I am, trying to respect the bro-code and keep away from _his_ girl and _he_ goes messing around with someone else? I really don't know what to think anymore. Hito-nii has always been a great guy, he was kind, supportive, helpful, and he never judged me when he and Rick pulled me out of a fight. In fact, he usually acts as comic relief when Rick is too pissed to even look at me.

But right now, I feel very inclined to judge _him_!

First, I learn that he's dating my classmate. Whatever, he has the right to do whatever he wants but then, she tells me they're living together? Okay, so they're that close, it's not that uncommon. Again, none of my business.

He even seemed very happy to get a message from her earlier, she had texted him about an ice cream parlor she went to with her friend or whatever and then Rick chided him for not taking her out for ice cream before and he brushed it off, just like that.

Then, like magic, she appeared with senpai in front of us and Hito-nii started ruffling her hair and even threw an arm around her shoulder!

Wasn't PDA frowned upon in japan anyways? What did he think he was doing?

And to top it off, he starts flirting with Senpai in front of us all! Really? I mean who does that in front of his own _girlfriend_?

Not only that, but he totally ignored her after senpai left, spacing out as he stood in the corner by himself, looking all whipped and dreamy.

Not that I minded, at least then, she was talking to me. Low, I know, but dammit I did try to keep my distance, I spent the better half of that train ride trying to ignore her! So I'm blameless in this whole thing. I tried to behave myself, contrarily to _him_.

And after all that, he shamelessly comes and grabs her hand as if all was right with the world. What a jerk!

And I don't understand why Rick is encouraging him about his shameless behavior right now! I've had enough! When Rick finally hangs up, I get up from the couch, set on letting him know what I think. If I can't call _that_ _guy's_ crap off, I'll make sure Rick, at least, gets a piece of my mind!

"You know what? This is bullshit! And I can't believe you're okay with this! Mogami-san is a great girl and that idiot doesn't deserve her." I barked, restlessly pacing in the small space.

Wasn't he the one who always told me to treat girls right? Why is he tolerating Hito-nii's behavior? Or does he get a free pass because he's his friend? He never held back from scolding _me_ when I messed up with my exes and I was never even this bad.

He stared at me, flabbergasted for a moment before asking me what I'm talking about. Oh, this is just perfect!

"What am I talking about? I'm talking about Hito-nii acting like a complete ass in front of his girlfriend, flirting with Kotonami senpai right in front of her and you all but offering to be his wing man! What the hell Rick? What did Mogami-san do wrong for him to treat her that way? I mean, only a few hours ago he still seemed like he was head over heels for her and the moment another girl shows up, he forgets about her?"

Rick's eyes widen and he steps forward holding his hands up in an appeasing way.

"Wait, you think Hitoshi is-" He starts but I don't let him say anything more, I'm not sure what I'd do if I hear him trying to justify what that prick's doing.

"Don't! Don't you dare defend him Rick! I might always get dumped, but at least I manage to stay faithful to the girl I'm dating."

I grab my jacket, kick a can out of my way and storm out of his place. I'm not in the mood for anything anymore and god help whomever gets in my way right now.

* * *

I ignore all of Rick's calls and texts that night, I was still too pissed to talk to him, anyway. It took me a little while to calm down before going home. Once there, I assured my parents the only reason I changed my mind about crashing at Rick's was because I remembered I had some homework due tomorrow that I needed to work on. Hah! As if that's stopped me before! But they seemed to buy it anyway so who am I to complain.

It took me a little while to fall asleep and even when I did, it was a restless, fitful night for me. It was a lot to deal with in such a brief time and it all started with _her_.

When I first saw her, I couldn't stop thinking about her and who could've blamed me? She's pretty to look at and she has the most fetching pair of eyes and I felt instantly enchanted. I have to admit, I was instantly attracted to her. I'm sure everyone's been there at least once, that girl you saw in a café or that guy who walked by you in the street and the first thing you thought was "What a hot person!"

But, when I saw her in class, I felt weird, excited, and a bit panicked and then when I spoke to her at the end of the day, I felt giddy talking to the golden eyed new girl who no one else seemed to speak to. Was I the only one who thought she's pretty?

Then, when she started talking about Hitoshi and how close she made them sound to be, I felt my mood deflate. That's when I knew I had gone and gotten myself a crush on the new girl, but I wasn't too worried, what is it people say about crushes? …oh, right! They go away the moment the person you like change their haircut. I mean, if a feeling is that fickle, there's no need to make a big deal out of it, right? Well…

Finding out I had a crush on Mogami-san and knowing that she was my friend's girl was not a happy moment but I did my best to cope with it, after all I wasn't the dramatic one, ahem, that would be Rick.

And yeah, that physical attraction, turned to something slightly deeper after I spend more time talking to her and ogling-OBSERVING her. I started noticing things about her, things that made her interesting and endearing like how she fidgets with her foot when she's solving a problem on the board or how she pinches the bridge of her nose when someone's being noisy at the club or even how she narrows her eyes at me when I say something that bothers her, but I still wasn't too worried about my feelings becoming something too much for me to handle. It was a I-like-her-but-she's-taken-so-whatever kind of thing, you feel me?

So that's that, even though it wasn't a tragedy, it was kind of a bit sad that I was pathetically crushing on Hito-nii's girl.

But dammit, what happened today messed me up! Even if he wasn't as close to me as Rick, Hitoshi was probably the only other friend I had in this hell hole and seeing him act that way made me so damn mad I wanted to punch something! Him and Rick always preached about treating girls right,

"Don't curse around girls.",

"Don't fight around girls, if you can help it.",

"Always be a gentleman",

"Don't raise your voice if you two fight",

"Don't be petty when they break up with you" They'd say.

Every time I had asked them for advice, they taught me to do right by girls and be good to them and now I practically had to watch him throw all those values away and act like a f***ing pig around his own girl. He seemed like a hypocrite and losing faith in him hurt much more than the thought that he's my crush's boyfriend.

So yeah, I had a bad night.

When my alarm clock rang after what felt like half an hour of sleep, I slammed it dead and swung my legs over the bed. I showered, got dressed, and joined my parents down for breakfast.

"Hey, kiddo! Take a seat your mother will be down in a moment." My father said, joyfully flipping something over the stove.

"Morning, dad." I grunted. I'm not a morning person, okay?

Mom had an 'English only' rule at home. She said we have the chance to speak Japanese outside, so, we might as well speak English at home; hence me calling him dad and the lack of honorifics. Mom joined us a few moments later and the two of them chatted a bit as we had our meal. I just ate in silence, pondering last night's events that I couldn't seem to shake off no matter how hard I tried to. If you'd asked me what I'd had for breakfast, I wouldn't know what to answer, I was that lost in my thoughts.

After we finished eating, I asked dad to drop me off at school, I wasn't in the mood to take the bus, or ride my bike there, so he gave me a ride and that would be why I got there early.

I entered the classroom to find Mogami-san sitting there along with two other girls quietly talking in the corner. She had her head resting on the arm she had on the desk, while her other arm was hanging limply by her side. Seeing her like that reminded me of the day I first saw her in class.

At first, I had planned to just say "hi" and keep my distance as best I could, like I always did in the past few days, I only kept our interactions to a bare minimum since she was Hitoshi's girl -even if others would argue that that "bare minimum" was more often than was necessary- but screw it, he doesn't deserve that kind of courtesy.

I'm not going to try and snatch her up but I'm not going to stay away from her either. Ain't nothing wrong with making friends, am I right? I took my seat and turned to greet her.

"Good-" She started to greet me back but was interrupted by a yawn. "Sorry! Good morning Hizuri-san." She wanly smiled at me before leaning on her hand, and may I say how damn adorable she looked as she did that? How is it that no one else was hitting on her? Not that I am! ...Anyway, she seemed exhausted and her yawn wasn't the only indicator of her poor state. I noticed dark circles under her eyes and she seemed a bit pale.

"You don't look too well." I say and I'm one second too late before realizing how offensive that sounds. Way to put your foot in it, you dumbass! "I mean, you look tired." I blurt out, trying to correct my mistake.

She chuckles and waves me off. "I know. I didn't get much sleep last night."

That makes me see red for a second, was that jerk keeping her up all night? She's still just a high school student! I clench my fist to keep myself from clenching my jaw instead. I swallow back a curse and casually ask her if everything's alright. With some luck, she'd take it as a question about her health.

"Yes. I was just burning the midnight oil reviewing the latest math lessons." She yawns again and then frowns, looking at the offensive blank whiteboard. "I hate math, it's so hard for me to figure out." She mumbles crankily, making me chuckle.

I don't know what possessed me into saying my next words and I probably never will, but I was so relieved knowing that she had been up studying and not doing… something else, that I said it without realizing. "Math's my favorite subject, if you want I can help you out." She perks up and it gives me enough courage to say more. "We could head to the library later and we can study there." Does it sound like I'm trying to pick her up? Cuz it feels like I'm throwing pickup lines her way, what with the nervous waiting for her answer and all.

"Really? You're sure it won't bother you? I'm sure you have better things to do." Her shoulders sag as she says it, but she smiles nonetheless.

Better things to do? I really don't honey, not with Rick on my bad books. "Nope, I'm all yours." Alright, that came out wrong. Talk about a Freudian slip! "And it won't bother me at all!" But then again everything I say around this girl comes out wrong one way or another, so I might as well go with the flow.

"Thank you so much!" She says, smiling brilliantly and I think I managed to forget my own name there for a moment. Am I that simple? Or do all guys' IQs drop when they interact with their crushes? "To tell you the truth, I can't catch up no matter how hard I try. Everything else is easy enough but Math has always been a stick in the mud for me." She admits, looking sheepish before she straightens up in her seat. "…But I can't just ask you to help without doing anything else in return, there has to be a subject I can help you out with!"

I wanted to point out that she didn't ask for help, that I had offered and that she didn't need to do anything in return but she looked so determined and I remembered my last history test... Yikes!

Okay, maybe I do need a hand… and hey, we'd have more occasions to hang-err, study together if she helps me out too, right?

"I could use some help with History," I said, averting my eyes and suddenly feeling like a disgrace to the Japanese population. "I always get the kanjis wrong for historical events..."

Why am I telling her this? Why on earth would I sink myself deeper? She must already think I'm a useless foreigner with -wasted- Japanese blood in him, I know most kids in this god forsaken school do.

But instead of a laugh or a venomous comment she just smiles and says she can give me a few tips. I had to bite the inside of my cheeks to keep myself from smiling like an idiot. That _can't_ be good.

* * *

We decided to skip club activities, headed to the library and kept studying for two hours straight. Kyoko -she gave me permission to call her that since I was now her 'sensei' as she said and I gave her the same liberties- is very quick, she understood stuff quickly as I explained them and she's an even better teacher, the tips she gave me might sound ridiculous or childish but they work. One tip was to link the number of strokes in the kanji with a digit from the year in which the event happened, and since math was my thing, that tip went a long way.

"See, it's not that hard, right?" She says, stretching in her seat.

"Yeah, I just never really liked memorizing stuff." My answer makes her smile.

"You don't say." She teases.

I love how she went from being awkwardly shy and slightly distant to friendly and sarcastic once we found common ground. It felt like we had always been close and I felt comfortable around her.

"Don't make me give you more integrals to calculate next time." I mock-threatened.

"You don't scare me, now that I got the hang of them I'm not worried about them anymore so do your worst." She said, sticking her tongue out at me. Why, that little brat!

"We'll see how fearless you'll be when we get to differential equations."

After a while, when we noticed we had been doodling and making random conversation instead of making any more progress with studying, we decided it was time to go home.  
Kyoko called _him_ and told him he didn't need to pick her up since she was going home earlier than usual and I decided to not let that bother me.

So what if she's dating someone who doesn't deserve her, that's not for me to meddle in, I'll just be her friend. Yeah, I can do that, I can just be the supportive friend. It doesn't matter that I had a crush at first sight on her! Nope! I'll get over it! Rick always seems to get over girls as fast as lightening, why wouldn't I be the same?

I offered to walk her back home and though it took some convincing but she eventually accepted. We walked in peaceful silence making small talk now and then. It was almost weird how just walking side by side could be so pleasant and peaceful.

Ok, maybe I _can't_ be like Rick.

"Do you always walk home?" She asks offhandedly brushing a stray hair off her face.

"Yup, it helps to stretch my legs after spending the better part of the day sitting down."

"I guess you're one of those active people…" She seems to have forgotten that I was literally fighting a bunch of dudes when we first met. I can't exactly afford to be inactive.

"I'm more of a Netflix and chill kind of girl."

"You don't like sports?"

"Not really. I just don't feel like working out most of the time." I hum in understanding.

I used to be like that before I met Rick, though for me it was more because of my depression when we moved from the U.S. I hope it's nothing as bad in her case. I wanna ask but it feels like I'd be intruding if I do, it's an intimate subject after all and we're barely on first name basis.

Now that I think about it, she doesn't speak to a lot of people in our class, nor in the drama club, aside from me and Kotonami senpai, that is. And she always seems to be a bit blue, always spacing out and staying in her own corner. It doesn't really make much sense, she's a sweet girl and unlike me, others don't hold prejudices against her, I'm surprised she didn't make hordes of friends by now.

Is it because she prefers to be lonely? That's highly unlikely seeing how comfortable she was when we met her yesterday.

Is she just socially awkward? Maybe.

In hindsight, I was the first to initiate contact with her and so was Kotonami senpai, so maybe that's just it.

"Hey, why don't we grab some ice cream?" I say once I notice we're almost in _that_ _guy's_ neighborhood.

"Huh?" She looks up.

"What? Are you one of those people who don't eat ice cream in winter?" I smirked, knowing that she wasn't since she had it only yesterday with senpai.

"No, it's just that you said it out of the blue… besides, we can't exactly go to town at this hour and the grocery store nearby only has popsicles, so…"

"Cool! I like the cherry flavored ones!" I say, enthusiastically. "Lead the way."

"Uh, O-okay."

We bought our popsicles and ate them as we slowly walked towards her place, when I spotted a playground nearby I insisted on taking a turn on the swings and dragged her there.

"I'm starting to think there was something in those popsicles, you're acting really weird." She laughed.

"What's so weird about swings!"

"I don't know, maybe the fact that we're grown teens and this is a kids' playground?" She quirks her brow at me teasingly.

I turn to look at the primary colored swing chairs and slides on the opposite side. "You're never too old for swings, c'mon."

She rolls her eyes but sits on the swing chair with a shake of her head. Instead of sitting on the other chair, I go behind her and grab the chains and start pushing her. "Hold on tight!"

"What? No! I'm still in my uniform!" She protests.

"So?" I push a bit harder.

"Short skirt, Kuon! Think!"

"So what? I'm the only one here and I can't see anything from this angle, don't worry." Kyoko groans but after a few pushes she lets go of her worries and hoots every time she's high up.

I look at my watch and see that it's roughly the time I would be arriving home usually and probably Kyoko as well so I grab the chains and slow the swing's momentum.

"That wasn't so bad, now was it?"

"No, it wasn't." She giggles, still high from the adrenaline rush.

"I'm glad. Let's go."

"Wait, you're not taking a turn?" She looks back at the swings excitedly.

"No, I think I'm too heavy for you to be able to push me, skinny as you are." She scoffs at my tease and starts walking toward the exit of the playground.

"Whatever, your loss Schwarzenegger."

We both walk in companionable silence until we reach her house – _his_ _house_ \- and we say goodbye. I wait until she's inside and just as I turn to head to my own house, I find myself facing the last person on earth I wanna see right now.

"Kuon! Fancy meeting you here." He says in that ever jovial tone of his.

I smile tightly back at him and decide to have some fun. "Yeah, I was just walking _Kyoko_ home."

His eyes widen at my words and he seems surprised but not angry. Some confidence he has! "Oh, didn't know you guys are on first name basis now." He says with an, almost, carefree smile. Almost. I can see the nervous twitch in the corner of his lip.

Idiot! I bet he'd never thought there'd be someone who can see Kyoko for what she's worth. I'm still not going to snatch her up but it wouldn't hurt for him to think he's got some competition. Maybe then, he'd stop taking her for granted.

"Yeah, I guess we're getting closer." I smirk and walk past him without saying goodbye. There. That should give him some food for thought.

* * *

Once at home I just went about my day as I usually did. I changed out of my uniform, did my chores, did the science homework that was due for tomorrow and played some CS GO. I had a few more missed calls and texts from Rick but I ignored them, swiping the notifications away and by the time my mother called for dinner, there was nothing left for me to do to try and get my mind off of things. Seeing him near her house made things seem so real, I'm not gonna pretend it didn't bother me. But enough of that, aside from that small part, today was a good day. And with that thought, I made my way downstairs.

Ugh. I should've just stayed in my room! Mom made lasagna. One of my least favorite dishes for the only reason that it's one of the dishes she manages to mess up the most.

She over cooks the pasta, cooks the meat until it's dry and somehow manages to make the tomato sauce taste as sour as a freshly squeezed lemon. And the bechamelle sauce is lumpy. I'm sure it's not supposed to lumpy! It looked like a freaking murder scene took place on my plate!

But as always, dad and I shoved one mouthful after the other into our mouths, schooling our faces into neutral expressions.

Even if she was the worst cook we knew, it wouldn't do to hurt her feelings after she tried so hard. The last time I made a face at something she cooked dad kicked me so hard under the table, I limped for two days straight.

The meal progressed in relative silence which was soon broken by the loud, brief ring of my phone notifying me that I had just gotten a new text. I quickly pulled out my phone from my pocket, not bothering to wipe my hands. I know. Gross. Don't act like you've never done that before!  
Anyway, it was Kyoko! We had exchanged numbers earlier and I felt myself smile at the thought of getting my first text from her.

God, I was becoming as sappy as dad is when he's around mom!

 _'Good Job today! Thanks a lot for your help! ↖(^ω^)↗'_ She texted.

I had to cough to cover my chuckle at the emoji she sent, I didn't know studying could make someone that excited! Just hours ago, she groaned at the thought of doing calculus.  
I quickly typed a reply and put the phone back in my pocket.

"Kuon. What did we say about phones at the table?"

Err, not quickly enough apparently.

"Sorry, mom!" I smiled sheepishly at her and I saw her glance at my dad who smiled at her too, as if pleading for my case. That's an MVP if I ever saw one!

"Maybe we can forgive him if he tells us who sent him that text and what it says?" He said, with a sly smile. Scratch that, he's a complete traitor! And there's no way in hell I'm telling them anything about my text.

I feigned a sudden interest in my plate and ignored their expectant looks. When they realized I wasn't going to say anything, I got teased by them both.

"Is it a girl?", "A new girlfriend perhaps?" and "Are you bringing her home?" was what they managed to say before I excused myself after murmuring the unconvincing lie of "It's just a funny text from Rick". I swear to god, those two can be worse than teens sometimes!

In my room, I log into Facebook and chat with some of my friends from the U.S. Kyoko's online too and we talk a bit about random stuff and exchanged memes and BuzzFeed tests. It was fun! I even discovered I was gonna sacrifice my first born to Crime Master Gogo… crazy, right? Seriously, though, these quizzes are hilarious!

Before I fell asleep, I thought back about how I spent the day. Needless to say, I slept much better than last night.

* * *

When I woke up I subconsciously ran everything that happened since I met Kyoko through my head. I realized I was acting bitter and childish and decided to meet up with Rick later to fix things up. True, I didn't like that he was encouraging that guy to play with Kyoko, but I owe him too much to keep at it and it's not like he was the one hurting her, anyway.

With a heavy sigh, I get up from my bed, put my work out cloths on and grab my phone. I kiss my mom on my way out and put my earphones on. Some exercise would do me good.

I ran for a few miles -three and a half if the app on my phone is to be trusted- and when I decided to turn around and run back to my house my phone dinged.

The round icon with Kyoko's picture told me she had sent me something on messenger and I felt anticipation creeping up on me. That excited, silly feeling I felt when I saw her text yesterday. The same feeling you never get when you get a text from Just_A_Friend™.

 _'U there?'_ I read.

I sigh and run my hand over my sweat drenched hair. I was so damn confused! Would it be wise talking to her? Only yesterday I had told myself that I could be her friend but now I'm not so sure anymore. Am I leading myself on by telling myself I'll be ok just having her around?

Ugh, damn it all to hell!

 _'Yup! Sup?'_

I'm an idiot, I know. A weak idiot. But it wouldn't be fair to her if I start ignoring her now. Not after yesterday.

' _Hey, can you keep a secret?'_

I smiled, I could see her whispering that with a conspiratory look on her face.

 _'I guess? What is it? _ '_

 _'I think Moko-san and Hitoshi like each other. As in, more than friends. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)'_

I felt a stinging pain go through me as I read that. Of course, Kyoko would notice. She's not blind and she sure as hell is not stupid. I was still thinking of what to say when she sent something else.

 _'Well, Senpai is harder to read but I'm pretty sure Hitoshi likes her at least'_

Through my whole life and for all the bullying I had gone through, I never felt like punching someone as hard as I want to punch _that guy_ right now. Kyoko doesn't deserve this.

 _'Are you okay?_ ' I finally bring myself to type.  
 _'Yeah but I might need your help to set them up on a date or something, ༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ is it too much to ask?'_

As I read that, my ire rises even higher. He doesn't know what he's throwing away. I don't get how she would want to do that after he broke her heart.

 _'Kyoko I really think you shouldn't.'_  
 _'Why not?ಠ╭╮ಠ I'll make sure if Moko-san has a crush on him too before I do anything. It's alright if you can't help I can ask Rick-san'_  
 _'Kyoko you don't owe him anything. I really think it would hurt you to get involved like that. If you're sure he likes her, you should just break up with him, it would save you from further heartbreak. Hitoshi doesn't deserve you if he goes around flirting with other girls anyway.'_ I say, feeling like a hypocrite. How low is it to tell her to break up with her boyfriend when I have a crush on her? _'I can help if you need a place to stay, if that's what you're worried about.'_ I add.  
I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind having her crashing at our place for a few nights. Mom would probably like having another girl at home too.

I stare at the 'seen' sign next to my message and I cringe at how long it's taking her to answer.

Could she be crying?

Was I being too blunt?

Damn it! These things shouldn't be talked over text messages! Now you've done it Kuon! I kick the floor and just as I'm about to send another text my screen flickers to life.

 _ **'Mogami Kyoko is calling'**_

* * *

 **A/N: Finally done with that chapter! XD you guys have no idea how tricky it was to get it right and tbh I'm still not completely happy with it, my beta and I started asking dudes we know how they would feel when they get crushes because I wasn't sure a teenage boy would be having the same thoughts as a teenage girl xD But enough about me, looks like Kuon went and made up a whole new world in his imagination XD let's hope next chapter things will be set straight.**

Note to **'I Believe In Ghosts. Do You?'** readers: I'm sorry about not updating in a while, I'm taking a little break to figure things out for that story!

 **Michiyo:** Lmao great! Fangirling is good! I fangirled too when I wrote it XD I'm glad you enjoyed that chapter so much, here's Kuon's POV! Did you like it? Thanks a lot for your support!

 **Kris:** Lol XD They never stop bickering lol I'm glad you enjoyed it! XD Exactly Kuon always jumps to conclusions and yes, even if he's kind of in denial right now, he does love her XD Thank you for the review!

 **Erza:** I'm so glad! Awww! It's so sweet to hear that about you and your brother, it's like you're the real life Kyoko and Toshi XD Don't worry, I won't drop it at this point Thank you for the cute review!

 **Guest:** And I love your review and love the fact that you loved all those things XD I'm so glad to know you're having fun with this story, I hope it'll keep entertaining you! Thank you for reviewing!


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hey there, guys! First of all, I'd like to say sorry to those of you who have been told this chapter was to be posted within a week of the previous one, things have been a bit unstable since we're in the process of getting back to school here.

So last chapter got 21 reviews! you guys are AMAZING! Thank you so much for all the attention and love you're giving to this story Also, the majority of those 21 reviewers expressed their amusement and mirth at poor Kuon XD YOU GUYS! When I wrote that chapter I did my best to make Kuon seem as pathetic as possible with his one sided crush and you guys were merciless XDDDDDDDDDD I laughed so hard at every review dragging the poor boy! I think it's safe to say this fandom is one of a kind XD

Anyway, you and I thank the awesome **bboo-berry** for beta reading and editing this chapter for us!

Enjoy!

* * *

 _ **Previously...**_

 _I stare at the 'seen' sign next to my message and I cringe at how long it's taking her to answer._

 _Could she be crying?_

 _Was I being too blunt?_

 _Damn it! These things shouldn't be talked over text messages! Now you've done it Kuon! I kick the floor and just as I'm about to send another text my screen flickers to life._

 _ **'Mogami Kyoko is calling'**_

* * *

 **Ch 5: Keeping a safe distance**

 _ **Kyoko's POV**_

It was weird enough having Kuon ask me if I was okay after what I had told him but what he is saying now is plain confusing. I stare dumbly at the message he just sent me as if it can tell me what's the meaning behind it.

 _'Kyoko, you don't owe him anything. I really think it would hurt you to get involved like that. If you're sure he likes her, you should just break up with him, it would save you from further heartbreak. Hitoshi doesn't deserve you if he goes around flirting with other girls anyway.'_

Wait. _What_? Kuon thinks... I'm in love with Hitoshi? He thinks THAT I'M DATING HITOSHI?

EW!

How did that happen? I mean, I know that we're not related but isn't it still incest dating your step brother? How could Kuon think that? My phone dings again and his next message makes everything click into place.

 _'I can help if you need a place to stay, if that's what you're worried about.'_

Kuon thinks that I'm dating Hitoshi and that I'm staying at his place. That makes me think how I never told Kuon that Hitoshi was my step brother. He probably didn't think about that possibility since he knew him for much longer and there was no trace of my existence in Toshi's life and somehow neither Rick nor Hitoshi felt the need to express that Toshi and I are siblings.

Glancing back at the last message makes me blush like crazy. I remember when Kuon asked me if Hitoshi and I were staying together and I had answered that there was no helping it. He must think I'm one of those loose girls!

Oh my god. Kuon thinks that Hitoshi is cheating on me with Moko-san! How did all of this happen!

That's it. I can't let this misunderstanding go any further. I hit the call button before I know it and it takes less than three seconds for Kuon to answer.

"H-hello?" His deep voice greets me hesitatingly.

"HE'S MY BROTHER!" I exclaim, loud enough to make even myself wince at the high pitch. There's a brief silence before Kuon's dumbfounded "Huh?" answers me.

Right. Context Kyoko. This guy thinks you're in love with Hitoshi. Breath. Keep the decibels low. Speak calmly and articulately. Here we go.

"I just realized that you're misunderstanding the situation,"

I Pause.

"And that it's partly my fault because I never said it."

That's it, take a deep breath to steady your voice.

"Hitoshi is my brother."

Not good enough. Give the details.

"Step brother actually."

That's it. Good job.

When Kuon doesn't say anything else, I bring myself to elaborate further.

"That's why we live at the same house. His dad married my mom not long ago and we moved in to live with them. I'm not d-dating him or anything and I'm definitely not in love with him!" I say.

"You're not?" His voice is soft as he says it and I hurriedly say that it's not that I don't love Toshi platonically and go on and on about how he's a good big brother and when I realize I've been blabbering I force myself to shut up. I think he got it.

"Oh, Uhm..." He chuckled nervously and I'm relieved to know I'm not the only one feeling embarrassed at the situation.

"This is awkward." He clears his throat.

"Tell me about it." I say, biting my lip.

"Yeah... Sorry for misunderstanding, it's just that it never occurred to me..."

"Yeah..." I think of a way to diffuse the situation and I say the first thing that comes to my mind. Naturally, that would be the thing I had on my mind before this whole debacle. "So, does that mean you'll help me set them up?"

His laugh makes everything feel right again and I sigh inwardly in relief, glad that things have been cleared up. "Um, sure, why not."

* * *

I lay on my bed, smiling faintly after we hang up. We were talking normally again and I felt at peace. It was still slightly embarrassing thinking about Kuon imagining Toshi and me as a couple. Thank god I explained things to him!

I freeze for a moment and my arms go limp on the pillow I had been hugging.

Why would I feel relieved that Kuon knows I'm single? It's not like I'm interested in him like that, anyway. It's not like I would be interested in anyone like that again at all. Kuon's just a friend. Sure, I like him, he's kind and funny and ...handsome.

No stop it, Kyoko! Kuon's just a friend.

... Yes, but a very handsome friend.

I groan to myself. No one can deny the fact that he's handsome!

Even if I were to discard everything I'm going through, Hitoshi would never let me date Kuon, he doesn't even want me to hang out with him!... Not that I would care about what he says if I wanted to date Kuon.

wait that's not right, it's more like Kuon wouldn't want to date me.

Wait, no…

I was saved from further turmoil by a light knock on my door.

"Come in!"

I'm surprised to see Kenzo shyly poking his head through the slightly opened door.

"Hey, come in." I smile awkwardly.

Kenzo and I are still not the best of friends but we're on peaceful terms, especially after the flour incident. I watch him walk towards my bed as I sit up and once he reaches me he extends a chocolate bar to me with his tiny hand.

"Nii-san bought some and he asked me to bring you one..." He says.

I smile and take it from him. "Thank you."

He gives me a tiny smile in return and murmurs a "You're welcome." He turns around to leave and when his eyes fall on my shelf he stops in his tracks.

"Whoa! Is that detective Conan!" He says running to stand on his tip toes to get a closer look at my action figure.

"That's right." I get up and pick it up from the high shelf. I give it to Kenzo so that he can look at it closely. "My dad and I used to watch it when I was your age." I say, smiling at the undisguised excitement showing on his face. "Do they still air it on T.V?" It's been a while since I last watched it but I wouldn't be surprised if it's still ongoing, it was quite successful at the time.

"Yes! Nii-san showed it to me on his laptop. He's so cool! And so smart!"

"I know, right?" I chuckle and he smiles brightly, turning the action figure around.

"You can borrow it if you want? It's been a while since he went out on an investigation." I say in an attempt to make friends, I'm sure that's the reason Toshi sent Kenzo to my room in the first place. It was adorable seeing him hesitating at my offer. It was obvious he wanted to take it but for some reason he didn't accept. "That's alright, I'm sure you'll take good care of him. You can bring him back when you're done."

That seemed like enough prompting to Kenzo. He smiled and hugged the figure to himself and thanked me before running out of the room.

I chuckle and shake my head, had I known that was all it would take to have him smile at me like that, I would have bribed him from day one. Maybe I should start watching the anime again with him…

* * *

"Kyoko-chan, would you pass the water pitcher?" Ryouta's voice pulled me out of my silent -yet amused- observation of Kenzo picking at his food. He was gathering all the beans on one side of his rice bowl with a disgusted frown.

"Here you go."  
"Thank you."  
"By the way, princess," Hitoshi started. "When do your exams start?"  
"In two weeks." I say with a loud sigh.

"Oh!" Mom exclaims and turns a worried glance towards Ryouta.

"Oh, honey we're sorry we're going to leave you at this time, maybe one of us can switch places with another reporter?"

She was alluding to the three days' work trip they were going to take tomorrow, which was partly the reason why Kenzo was glaring at his food. She and Ryouta ji-san were supposed to write some sort of review piece about the ten most visited spots in Osaka. I was about to tell her there was no need for switching places or anything of the sort when Toshi beat me to it.

"Don't be silly, ba-chan! I'll be here I'll take care of princess and Kenzo. You two just go and bring back a lot of souvenirs."

Everyone chuckled at Hitoshi's easy words and mom nodded, after glancing at me and noting that I wasn't worried about her departure.

Kenzo on the other hand, whined again, expressing his need to go with them. Mom put her hand on Kenzo's cheek, her worry coming back to color her face. I knew she was going to say something concerning Kenzo and this time I'm the one who beats Toshi into comforting her. "I can pick up Kenzo from elementary, since club activities are on a lighter schedule this week, y'know because the senpais need to do more studying… school ends half an hour earlier for me than for Kenzo."

I smiled down at my pouting little brother who glanced up at me with teary eyes which I returned with a wink.

"And, maybe if Kenzo behaves we can all camp together in the living room." Hitoshi grins at Kenzo and that seems to make the younger boy perk up.

"Right! We can even investigate a case with detective Conan, what do you think Kenzo?" I add, sounding way too cheerful but he doesn't seem to notice and just smiles excitedly.  
"Yes! I want to!"

* * *

"Someone's teacher's pet." I whisper as I lean forward over my desk behind Kuon. It was English period and forty percent of what the teacher said came in the form of "Very good, Mister Hizuri."

"Jealous?" He says over his shoulder, one eyebrow perked up and an easy smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

"Why should I be? I'm doing fine with English, besides the history teacher loves me." I snicker.

"And the lit teacher and the science teacher, even the math teacher pays you extra attention though you suck at it." He snorts back at me.

"Who's sounding jealous now?" I poke his neck with me pencil making him shrug.

"Don't forget that we have PE next, who was it that came last in track the other week again?" He turned and gave me a lopsided grin.

"Whatever, I'll do better this time." I wasn't in the mood for running that time anyway.

"Uhuh, I'm sure you will." He scoffs and I kick his foot under my desk.

"Wanna bet on it?"

"Sure! If you manage to come first, I'll buy you lunch tomorrow!"

"Ugh, cafeteria food is hardly rewarding. Make it ice cream and we have a deal!"

"Alright, if you lose though, you'll be my partner in the school festival's test of courage. Last year they made me be the ghost on my own. I almost died of boredom… and, god all those deafening screams." He pouted, no doubt thinking back about the event.

"You're on!" I wanted to say that I was alright with playing the ghost even if I won the bet since I did that at my old high school anyway, but I was afraid he'd ask for something else less convenient in that case.

Sure enough, next period we had PE, we all suited up and put on our sports shoes. After warming up, the teacher called us up and explained today's routine. The boys were supposed to start running first so all the girls gathered to watch from the shade. My eyes were locked on Kuon, it'd be embarrassing if he manages to be first and I don't.

The teacher blew the whistle and all the males from our class got into position. It was pretty impressive to watch the strong muscles of their arms and calves flex, actually. I don't remember finding it so fascinating in Kyoto.

When the teacher blew the whistle again they set off. The boys were fast and it was hard at first to make out who was taking the lead. Halfway through the lapse, a couple of guys were a few feet ahead of the rest and when there were like ten feet left to the finish line, one of the boys who were falling behind picked up his pace and managed to take the lead.

It was Kuon.

Ugh, he won the race!

Of course, he'd win the race! He probably wasn't even falling behind at all. Looking at him, the other guys didn't stand a chance since the beginning. He's tall, lean and well built. I saw him fight first hand and I knew he has quick reflexes and he told me himself he likes to stay in shape.

Why the hell did I make that bet? I haven't won a track race since middle school!

When they stopped he braced his fist against his side and panted, trying to catch his breath. I was distracted watching his chest rise and fall rhythmically and I almost missed it when he turned towards me and winked with that infuriating smile on his face.

A challenge. Fine. Bring it on!

The girls race was less enthusiastic than the boys'. Some girls barely jogged through the track, some didn't even bother finishing their lapse.

Me? Of course, I finished the lapse and I gave my all running through that track. I even managed to come second. No, it's ok I'm proud of that. I only wish it didn't mean I have to bear Kuon's smug, smirking face!

"Well, looks like someone will be wearing a white kimono to the festival." He said. "We'll match! Right side over left and all!"*

The only response he gets from me is an eye roll which makes him nudge me in the side. "Come on, don't be a sore loser. I'll buy you ice cream after school because you didn't come last!"

"Don't patronize me!" I push him sideways but he barely even moves.

"I'm not!" He laughs. And we keep bantering until the boys had to start their soccer match.

* * *

 _ **A few days later…**_

"Moko-san, that's ridiculous!" I exclaim, my eyes wide and I'm pretty sure I was bright red as she spoke to me. We were spending lunch break together, we moved to sit near a window in my classroom and we chatted but somehow our small talk progressed to something bigger.

"Why? It makes sense to me." She says keeping her voice low, putting down her bento on the table we were sitting at. "He always seems to be staring at you, I know you don't notice but it's so obvious, even I couldn't miss it." She rolls her eyes before going on. "And when you two speak, he always sounds like he's flirting with you."

"No, he doesn't! He never says anything even close to flirting!" I half cry, half whisper.

"Remember the first day we met? When we fought, he came running to your rescue." She argues, leveling me with an unimpressed stare. Moko-san was convinced that Kuon has a crush on me! Ridiculous, I know!

"He was paying me back for lending him my notes, that's what he said!"

"That's nonsense and you know it, he could've just bought you some chocolate bread or whatever, but he didn't, he got involved." She said as she took a sip from her ice tea, I was about to say something but she stops me with a hand held up. "Hizuri Kuon does _not_ get involved. In fact, he rarely talks to people, you know because of... well, I'm sure you heard of him getting bullied..." She huffs.

"It's just because he knows Hitoshi!" I cry.

"And you said yourself that he thought you were Matsuda-san's girlfriend! Which explains why he was acting so weird when we met with them the other day!"

"What are you even talking about?"

"He was silent the whole time, like he was sulking or something! He must've been jealous!"

"Moko-san, that's ridiculous!" I say for the zillionth time. "Why would he be jealous?"

Kanae seems like she's either about to bang her head against the wall or drive mine to that kind of fate. "BECAUSE HE HAS A CRUSH ON YOU, BAKA!" She hisses with narrowed eyes. "Why are you so scared of that idea?"

Her question takes me aback and I can feel my face fall while the particular reason bounces through my head. "It's...nothing." I whisper.

"I see that I'm the only one taking this friendship seriously, I'm gonna go sit alone don't follow me." She says as she starts to get up, closing her lunch box.

"NOOOOO, MOKO-SAN!" I cry, making heads turn toward us and Kanae winces in embarrassment. "I'll tell you, I'll tell you."

"Fine, hurry up and out with it." She says coolly, yanking her arm out of my grasp and adjusting her sleeves.

"Before mom and I moved here, we were living in Kyoto..."

 _ **Flashback**_

 _My mother and I finished greeting the visitors, dad's funeral was as crowded as it gets. He knew a lot of people and he was loved by so many. So, many came to pay their respects. Almost everyone in our neighborhood came, everyone but that boyfriend of mine._

 _I sighed, he was probably worried about seeing my crying face and not knowing what to do._

 _I don't even know why I'm surprised, Sho was never the reliable type. But I loved him and I turned a blind eye on his behavior_

 _As we finished greeting the last person to depart, I walk out to the garden for some fresh air. It has been a stressful couple of days and I feel like I'm being constantly suffocated._

 _As I slowly make my way to the back yard, I hear some noises, whimpers and moans and I hurry to see who that is. Maybe one of dad's friend was having a tough time coping with his death, or maybe someone's in pain._

 _What I see though, is not a grieving acquaintance nor a hurt person but my boyfriend-My, now, ex-boyfriend, making out with some girl. Both dressed in black, wrapped up in each other's grips, I guess they planned to come here to comfort me but ended up comforting each other… it was just... Sickening._

 _I looked around me and before I even knew what I was doing, I found myself spraying them with the watering hose. They parted, crying out, it was January after all and the water was all but frozen. I got a perverse feeling of satisfaction from watching them shiver. Serves them right._

 _I looked up at Sho and he didn't even have the decency to look even remotely ashamed._

 _"Kyoko-"_

 _"Don't." I say as I turn to walk away._

 _I'm done here. I'm sure he was going to try to smooth-talk his way out of this. After all, he had before and it worked. This wasn't the first time I caught him cheating, but I always forgave him because I loved him._  
 _But this is it. This is my dad's funeral, if he couldn't behave on this one day, no amount of love will make me stay with him._  
 _As I'm about to turn around the corner, he grabs my hand and yanks me around to face him._

 _"Whatever you're thinking, don't. You know that didn't mean anything." The nerve of him! How dare he speak to me in that scolding tone?_

 _"Shotaro, we're over." I manage to say in a calm voice._

 _"No, we're not. You always say that but you always take me back. You love me Kyoko." He says with a victorious grin and I want to slap that look off his face._

 _"I might've taken you back before, but not this time, not after that."_

 _He chuckles harshly and I'm wondering what ever possessed me into falling in love with him? How can he laugh at such a time? Doesn't he know how broken I am?_

 _"And then what? You'll move on with someone else? Don't be ridiculous, Kyoko, no one will have you. You're just a boring unattractive goody-two-shoes and now the only man who truly loved you is dead."_

 _I loudly gasp at that and this time I do slap him. He lets go of my arm and I run back inside. I lock myself in my room and I cry._

 _I cry for the time and effort I wasted on my relationship with him._

 _I cry for the bullying I was going to face again because of him once I go back to school._

 _I cry for the friends I never made because of him._

 _I cry for what that bastard said. Because he was right, because I am unlovable, because the only man who truly loved me is dead._

 _I cry because my father is dead._

 _The month following that, my mother gives me another reason to cry. She had taken a job in Tokyo because her current one wasn't going to be enough to support us both and she was going to leave me with the Fuwas for a while._

 _I didn't want to worry her, so I put on a smile and told her I'd be okay. I know she was doing it for us, for me. But I slightly hated her then. I hated her for abandoning me to my tormentor._

 _Sho was already doing his best at school to bully me into taking him back, now he'll have the opportunity to do it in his own home too._  
 _And he did, he used every free moment he had to make my life miserable. Messing with my stuff. Ruining my work at the inn. Saying hurtful things. And it didn't stop at that, he would sometimes grab my arm so tight it left me with a bruise. He'd sometimes push me against a wall and whisper how unworthy I am of anyone's attention. "Now, even your mom left you." He'd say._

 _He'd sometimes even try to kiss me, but he never succeeded. He'd always managed to make me cry though and I could see the amount of pleasure it gave him._  
 _When I'd ask him why he was doing this to me, "Because I own you" He'd say._

 _Stupid, stupid girl! See where love got you?_

 _ **End Flashback**_

"Oh, boy." Kanae sighed. "I'm sorry Kyoko. I'm sorry you had to go through that, I'm sorry you dated an asshole like that." Kanae's soft tone made me want to cry, but I laughed it off.

"It's alright, Moko-san. It's over now. I'm here and he's still in Kyoto. He can't hurt me."

"Yes, it's over and you know what else will bring you closure besides distance?" She said before glancing towards Kuon who was focused on his homework at his desk. "Moving on. Don't close your heart because of that idiot. Don't gives his words enough weight to make them come true. You are worthy of love! And there's -at least- one guy who seems very willing to fall for you." As she said that, we both turned to look at where Kuon was sitting.

"No. He doesn't." I say, and he happens to look my way at that exact moment, his eyes widen in surprise and a smile starts forming on his lips. I abruptly get up from my seat and storm out of the drama club, mad that I got caught looking at him. Mad that Moko-san insinuated those things.

As I stomp through the school garden I feel my ire rising at myself. Of course, I was right! Kanae was wrong, he didn't have a crush on me and I already knew that. He was just a friend at best. A classmate at worst. Nothing was gonna come out of this. Nothing good comes out of love anyway, hadn't I just told Kanae my exact reasons for refusing to acknowledge it?

I felt beyond frustrated and the running footsteps I heard behind me made it all worse. "Don't bother, Moko-san!" I yell without turning to look.

"Kyoko, is everything okay?"

My heart thuds as I hear that voice. It wasn't Kanae, it was Kuon.

I blink the tears off and I take a deep breath before turning to face him. I'm not feeling anything. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not.

"Kuon. What are you doing out here, weren't you... Busy?" I finish lamely and he rubs his neck.

"That's alright, I was just practicing my Kanji."

"Oh?"

"I'm making less mistakes now..."

"Yeah..."

"I guess that's what happens when you practice... and your tips were really helpful!"

"Right... "

"What I'm saying is, I've come a long way since we started studying together." He coughed to cover his awkwardness and I nodded.

"Why are you telling me this?" I blurted out, without thinking.

"I... I wanted to make sure you knew I'm grateful. Wouldn't want you to misunderstand and think I'm not." He said before smirking at me in that annoyingly adorable way of his. "After all, we've just recently cleared a major misunderstanding."

Realizing he was talking about me and Toshi, I started laughing and he soon joined me.

I was calmer. He made me feel relaxed just by talking nonsense and being himself.

As we walked back to the club, side by side, I realized that I was right. I shouldn't open my heart to anyone, least of all this guy. He had way too great an effect on me.

We're just friends. That's all we'll ever be. I'm not risking my heart again.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that ended on a rather sad note :/ Let me guys know what you think about this chapter!**

 **Erza:** Oooh, I wonder too XD Lol, even if you are evil and weird I love you for reading this story and having so much fun with it! XD yes! Kuon is rather hopeless, isn't he? He'll get over it, no harm done... maybe a bruised ego on his side but that's all XD Thank you so much for the review!

 **Kris:** I know, right? XD I'd die of embarrassment if I ever send a text like that XD I would've like writing this chapter on Kuon's point of view and show exactly how embarrassed he is but I needed to things from Kyoko's perspective x) Thanks a lot for the review!

 **Kariramos:** Hola! Gracias por el comentario! Alright, that's as far as my Spanish lessons can take me XD But I'm really happy that you're enjoying the story and looking forward to what's next, it warms my heart! Thanks again!

 **Michiyo:** Lol oh yeah XD Kuon did jump to conclusions a bit too fast and he made a mess by himself XD He definitely seems relieved in this chapter, doesn't he? I'm very happy this story is entertaining you! Thanks a lot for the review!

 **Guest1:** XD Ikr? He could've saved himself a lot of trouble if he just let Rick speak! Kyoko seems more embarrassed than amused, shows how much she cares *hint, hint* I'm glad you're enjoying this story! Thanks a lot for the support!

 **Guest2:** Here's more! Did you enjoy it? I'll tried to update again soon! Thanks for the read and the review!

 **Guest3:** Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love you! I'm so glad you're enjoying it and think so well of it I will keep updating to the best of my abilities! Thanks for the review!

 **Sara1:** XD Well, I sure hope you didn't die! Though I am glad that it's making you laugh! Thank you so much for the review!

 **Guest4:** I have to say, I'm very proud of Hitoshi as an OC and I'm glad everyone else seems to like him as much as I do! I hope you'll keep enjoying this story in the future too! Thanks a lot for leaving me a review!

 **Guest5:** Oh, wow, I'm gonna faint here! Really? You refresh the archive to see if it's updated and You love it BETTER THAN THE ORIGINAL?! If I don't update anytime soon, assume I'm dead from this adorable review! I ODed on the sweetness of this review! Thank you so much for your words, I sure hope I won't disappoint!

 **Guest6:** Here's the next post! Was it good? was it good? was it? lol I'll stop being annoying now and just thank you for your support!

 **Sara2:** XD He's a goof! So what did you think of the phone call? Awkward? Cute? Weird? Let me know! Thanks a lot for leaving a review!

 **Julie:** Sorry I didn't put anything about the look on his face when he found out but imagine he had his eyes closed tightly in embarrassment, his hand bracing his forehead and he was probably cursing himself repeatedly! Thank you so much for leaving me a review!


	6. Chapter 6

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello! How is everyone? As you guys must've noticed I only announce which POV it is when I switch from the person telling the story in the previous chapter, just thought I'd put this out there.

I also belatedly noticed that I have put a star in the next chapter an haven't put the explanation at the end of the chapter so I will put it here instead:

* The Kimono of a dead person is folded in a way that puts the right side over the left side contrarily to the way the living people wear it. Kuon here is alluding to that, since they'll be playing ghosts, logically they would wear them that way. A lot of you if not everyone of you must've known this before but I wanted to explain just in case.

And it looks like everyone seems to agree on refering to Sho as a 'JERK' XD honestly like 6 out of 14 reviewers called him that XD so I guess that'll be his nickname from now on XD

Anyyyyyway, without adding more small talk, I will leave you to it! Enjoy!

Special thanks to **bboo-berry** who is keeping an eye on them nasty mistakes!

* * *

 ** _Previously..._**

 _As we walked back to the club, side by side, I realized that I was right. I shouldn't open my heart to anyone, least of all this guy. He had way too great an effect on me._

 _We're just friends. That's all we'll ever be. I'm not risking my heart again._

* * *

 **Ch6: Baby steps**

 _ **Author POV**_

"See here? This date can easily be linked to a birthday or another event." Kyoko said, pointing at Kuon's text book.

"I can also think of it mathematically, it's made up of only primary numbers." Her attentive student said, scratching his head with his pen absentmindedly.

Kyoko grinned at him and leaned back in her chair. "Look at you! I'm a proud sensei." She chuckled.

He lightly tapped her head with the pen with a grin of his own. "Don't tease me about this and remember, tables will turn when we'll be doing math the next time."

"Ugh, I think we did enough of _that_ today to last me a lifetime." She pinched the bridge of her nose and shut her eyes.

"You know it's getting late, we should head home and continue another time." Kuon said as he reached for his stationary that was scattered all over the table.

"Sure," Kyoko said, following his example and starting to pack her things. "Since tomorrow's Saturday, wanna come over to my place?" She asked with what she hoped was a casual tone. Because they were going to casually study together. As casual friends. At her casual home with her casual mother and her casual step-father and her casual brothers lurking around. _Casual_.

"Sure!" He said swinging his backpack over his shoulder.

"It's a shame we can't ask Moko-san to come over too, she's busy studying for her entrance exams."

"Yeah, it's at these times I'm grateful we're second years." Kuon smiled at her.

"Any progress with her and Hito-nii since we last "set them up"?" He was openly smirking now and Kyoko rolled her eyes at him.

Last week when her mother and stepfather were on their trip, she invited Kanae and Kuon over, Kenzo was at school so it was only Hitoshi with them. Kyoko had hopped her hopeless brother would make a move but he didn't even stick around long enough to have a conversation with Kanae. In fact, their only interactions were when he greeted her and Kuon, brought them snacks, and said goodbye at the front door.

"No and it drives me crazy! when they first met, they got along so well! You saw it too, right? _Of course_ , you saw it, you even thought Toshi was cheating on me."

She let out an exasperated sigh, failing to notice the blush creeping over Kuon's face, punctuating his embarrassment at being reminded of the whole fiasco, and kept on talking.

"I know he likes her, I tried asking him if he was planning to ask her out any time soon but he keeps saying he's busy with his studies and whatnot."

"Oh?" was all he managed to say.

"My theory is," She looked up at him with a mischievous smile. "He's waiting for her to graduate from high school to make his move, it makes sense."

Kuon chuckled and shook his head at the matchmaking Kyoko.

"What about you? Ever dated anyone?" He asked not bothering to sound nearly as casual as she had earlier, his curiosity was undisguised as he looked at her waiting for her answer. Since he found out she and Toshi weren't romantically involved and were actually siblings, he started being more direct, he didn't bother masking his interest in her nor did he try to be subtle.

Kyoko on the other hand was not expecting the question, it took her a moment to compose herself and she pursed her lips before replying. "I thought I was, but it was just a stupid one-sided... thing." She looked ahead of her before continuing. "I caught him making out with another girl at my dad's funeral, you know?" She didn't sound heartbroken, she didn't sound pissed, in fact she didn't sound like anything. In Kyoko's mind, telling him only served to prove to herself that she had moved on from Sho and what he'd done to her and that she saw Kuon as a close friend with whom she can talk with about such things.

But Kuon noticed that her tone was cold. Too cold. It seemed detached and devoid of any feelings and that, from personal experience, let him know about how much it had hurt her despite her efforts to pretend otherwise. After all, he himself is an expert at putting up façades and knowing that Kyoko was hurt in such a way made him feel angry. "What a piece of shit." He bluntly declared, his ire showing clearly on his face. "I wanna punch his face in."

That made Kyoko giggle as she held a hand up to her mouth more amused than scandalized and Kuon was glad he made her feel at least good enough to let out a laugh. "Well, I don't think that's possible unless you wanna go all the way to Kyoto." She teased. "But I appreciate the feeling."

They were about to cross the gates of the school, when she got a text from Hitoshi telling her that it was Kenzo's birthday and that he had forgotten about it followed by a plead to buy a present for Kenzo from him with the promise that he would pay her back 'ASAP' Kyoko smiled and shook her head fondly, how come she only heard about Kenzo's birthday now? Well, she could get how it must've slipped her parents' minds but Toshi should know better. "You should probably go without me, I have an errand to run it seems."

"No, that's okay, I can come with." He shrugged.

"You sure?"

At his nod Kyoko bit her lip as a twinkle settled in her eyes.

"In that case, would you help me out with something?"

"If you would please lead the way, my lady." Kyoko chuckled as he bowed and flared his hand out gesturing at the way to the train station.

 _Always the one for theatrics, this guy_ She thought.

* * *

Kyoko twirled a strand of her hair as she thought back to the beginning of her evening. After dinner, her mother pulled a cake out of the fridge that she and Ryouta had brought for Kenzo, they all sang 'happy birthday' to him and smeared his face with cream from the cake all in good cheer. Kenzo seemed over the moon and when the presents were announced his excitement escalated to a whole new level.

Saena and Ryouta had bought him a pair of rollers which the birthday boy lost no time slipping his feet in. Kyoko had selected a video game for Hitoshi, which Kenzo loved, and from her, Kenzo received his very own Detective Conan action figure.

The way he looked at it, then back at her before throwing his arms around her neck whispering 'Thank you, nee-chan' made her tear up. At that moment, she felt like she and Kenzo became siblings for real and she felt a fierce protectiveness wash over her as she held his small frame in her arms.

Her phone rang, bringing her back to reality. 'Moko-san' flashed on her screen and she answered right away.

"Mokooo-saaaan!"

"Not so loud, I've been buried in books for at least nine hours today, my head's already throbbing."

Kyoko smiled sheepishly as if her friend could see her. "Sorry." She said in a lower voice.

"Whatever, how was your day?"

"It was good, I studied a bit-"

"With Hizuri." Kanae stated.

"...Yes and then he helped me pick up a gift for Kenzo-"

"You're not even dating the guy yet and you're already dragging him around on shopping trips? Way to go, girl!" Kanae teased.

"It's not like that, he wanted to come and he just helped me as a friend!" Kyoko said, falling back on her pillows.

"The lady doth protest too much, me thinks." Kanae said in a sing song manner.

"Ugh, if you're gonna keep teasing me about it I won't tell you that we're studying tomorrow at my house..."

"What? You invited him over?"

Kyoko smirked, she could see Kanae sit up on her bed as she said that. "Yes, I mean why shouldn't I? We're friends after all. And it's not like it would be his first time coming over, you were there the last time…"

"Right, what about, erm, your brother?"

Kyoko didn't miss Kanae's hesitation before mentioning Hitoshi, yes, something was definitely going on there.

"He'll just have to deal with it," she shrugged. "He was okay with it when I invited the both of you, wasn't he?"

"I suppose."

There was a brief pause before Kyoko spoke again. "I kind of told him about Sho earlier."

It was obvious she didn't mean her step brother by 'him'. "Really? How did that come up?"

"Uh," Kyoko mentally kicked herself, she had forgotten what she and Kuon had been discussing when he asked her if she had ever dated before, which was Kanae and her brother!

"He asked me if I dated anyone before and I just told him. Not in details of course, just that I had caught him kissing some other girl." Kyoko bit her lip, hoping Kanae wouldn't persist in asking about the context of their talk.

"And what did he say?"

Kyoko bit back a sigh of relief before she told Kanae about Kuon expressing the urge to punch Sho's face in.

Kanae chuckled. "I wouldn't blame him if he did, in fact I'd offer to help hold that idiot as he does it."

"Moko-san!" Kyoko scolded lightly as she chuckled.

"What? It's not like you'll feel bad for him anyway."

"No, but I wouldn't want you and Kuon to get in trouble over that ... Thing."

They both laughed at that and Kanae clucked her tongue. "I understand that you wouldn't want Hizuri to get into any more fights than he already has but I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you'd nurse his bruised knuckles."

Kyoko could feel rather than see Kanae wiggling her eyebrows and she chuckled even more shaking her head. "That's ridiculous!" She chuckled some more before letting out a happy sigh. She had gotten over her childish sulking and fit-throwing over Kanae's teasing and started taking it as harmless girls' talk. She didn't overthink it and she didn't let it gnaw at her, she just laughed over it and brushed it off and that was it.

"We should go on a girl's day out when my exams are over, have some of that ice cream you love so much." Kanae's voice was soft and wistful and Kyoko felt just how much she missed her best friend.

"We should."

When she hung up after exchanging good nights and sweet dreams, Kyoko fell back on her bed. Today was a good day.

She was about to close her eyes when she got a text from Kuon asking if they were still up for studying together tomorrow.

 _'Yup! Make sure to bring your history book! Oyasumi ^ω^'_

She'd texted back before drifting off into a deep slumber.

* * *

Kyoko was shaken awake by an ecstatic Kenzo. She blinked her eyes, not recognizing him at first then she smiled at him. "Hey!" She whispered, voice hoarse, eyes sandy, hair all over the place and all. "Why are you up so early?" She says after glancing at her alarm clock, the ugly one her step dad got her.

"Hitoshi will take me to Nakatsu-kun's house in the afternoon to show him my action figure!" He stated, beaming at her.

Kyoko chuckled at the childish glee before her. "That's great!" She said before pulling back her comforter. "Why don't you get in here? we should make the most out of the weekend." She yawned and Kenzo didn't think twice before jumping in and snuggling to her.

Kyoko chuckled and hugged him to her, it didn't take them much time to drift back into sleep with blissful smiles on their faces.

* * *

"Are you Nee-chan's boyfriend?" Kenzo asked with wide innocent eyes masking the slight feeling of possessiveness that he felt at the sight of an unknown male visiting his new found big sister.

Kuon shifted on his feet and let out a nervous chuckle. Right. He didn't get to meet Kenzo the last time he was here. "Um, No actually." He said, resisting the urge to add that he wanted to be. "I'm, ugh," He hesitated for a moment before saying "A classmate." He felt that he and Kyoko were at least friends -they were, after all, on first name basis- but he figured that if anyone should make that statement to her family, it should be Kyoko herself.

And speaking of Kyoko, she was up in her room facing quite the awkward situation herself. "Kuon's here for your... Studying session." Hitoshi said skeptically eyeing her.

He had been the one to open the door when Kuon arrived – _alone_ \- and when the younger man told him why he was there he offered to go fetch Kyoko and he left him with Kenzo.

"Right, I'll be down in a sec!" Kyoko said, doing her best to sound nonchalant.

It didn't last long as she could feel Hitoshi's eyes burning a hole in the back of her head. Why was he still there? She said she'd be down in a sec! Shouldn't he go downstairs and tell their guest that she'd be down in a sec? He should just go down and she'd follow in a sec! GOD!

"What?" She finally said, sharply turning to face him.

He only arched an eyebrow at her. Oh! how she hated that knowing look of his.

"It's fine since we're in here, right? You're here, not that Kuon would hurt a fly unprovoked and the house is a safe space, I can hardly imagine a fight happening in here. What's the big deal? You weren't this concerned the last time!" She rolled her eyes as she angrily fumbled with her school bag.

Hitoshi sighed and held his hands up in surrender, he shook his head and said that she shouldn't make her " _classmate_ " wait too much. In his mind, the last time, they had a chaperone. This time, no one was there to scold them with a loud "MO!" if they made googly eyes at each other.

Kyoko brushed off the feeling of surviving a Spanish inquisition and made sure she had all her stuff before exiting her room.

Once in the living room, she found her mother serving tea to Kuon and saying how it was always nice to have friends of Kyoko's over and seeming over the moon that Kyoko brought a friend home. Kenzo, Hitoshi, and Ryouta were all sitting opposite him fixing him with hostile stares. Kuon seemed to bear it all very gracefully and Kyoko decided that she had seen enough and shooed everyone but Kuon out of the living room. There was no way she was going to take him to her princess-themed, pink-walled room full of embarrassing, ugly trinkets from her step-father.

Now that she was done with damage control, it was time to face her biggest enemy.  
Her math text book.

* * *

Kyoko patted her hair with a fluffy towel, she was exhausted from all the stress of that day. Math equations aside, her mother had asked Kuon to stay for dinner and he politely, albeit awkwardly, tried to decline. The keyword here is "tried" because Saena insisted and eventually he accepted the invitation.

Ryouta had been civil throughout the meal, he tried to make some small talk and sure asked a lot of questions about Kuon's family, how his studies were going, and what were his ambitions for the future. Although he had a kind smile on his face it was still uncomfortable and she could see Kuon felt the same thing even though he had answered every question with a serious and respectful air that showed how much attention he had been paying her step-dad.

Hitoshi reverted to his playful nature and she was reminded once again that he was Kuon's friend. In fact, both young men knew each other before any of them knew her and that thought made her feel weird as she watched them banter over Kuon's share of karaage chicken, which Hitoshi tried to steal from. She had thought that Hitoshi had brought him home before but apparently, Rick and Kuon always waited for him outside and texted to announce their arrival when they met up near the house, which is why Ryouta acted like it was his first time meeting him, mainly because it was. Duh!

Kenzo on the other hand, refused to give Kuon a break. He just kept glaring at him as he clung to Kyoko's side, as if rubbing it in Kuon's face. Kyoko found it endearing as she had seen him do the same thing to her with her mother, it was Kenzo's way of marking his territory and though it can get irritating at times –especially when you're on the receiving end-, it was kind of adorable.

She was about to pull the blow dryer out of her cupboard when her mother knocked on the door and walked in with two cups of hot cardamom tea.

"Dinner was fun." Saena stated with a kind smile. "I hope Kuon-kun didn't feel too awkward."

Kyoko wanted to state that he must've felt awkward one way or another with the three musketeers ganging up on him, but she just decided to smile and take a sip of her tea.

"So, do you guys get along? Is he nice to you?"

Kyoko was taken aback by her mother's question, where did that come from? It didn't even make sense. Would she be friends with someone who wasn't nice to her? And then it clicked. Of course. After her mother found out she was being bullied when she went back to Tokyo to take her with her, she never really got over it.

"He is, Okaa-san. He's not one of the bullies from back in Kyoto, so don't worry about it." She said, looking her mother straight in the eye.

"I know honey, it's just that... Hitoshi mentioned something about him getting into trouble…?"

Kyoko's jaw tightened. "I'm going to kill him..." She mumbled. Is that why Ryouta was so hard on Kuon? Because yes, the way the ever-smiling, carefree, warm Ryouta acted with the young man could only be described as hard.

"Don't blame your brother, Kyoko." Saena said, caressing her hand. "Hitoshi and I have a lot of things in common when it comes to you, and one of them is the fact that we both want to protect you. I asked him to report to me about how you're fitting in since you guys seem to have formed a bond."

"I know," Kyoko sighed and braced a hand against her forehead. "I know, but Okaa-san I swear, Kuon's not a dangerous person-"

"I know, honey. Hitoshi never said he was." Her mother cut in. She took the hand she had been caressing between both of hers and started playing with her daughter's fingers. "Your father used to get into a lot of trouble in high school, you know? Always getting into other people's business, "defending the weak"," She made air quotes and chuckled lightly. "In fact, it was one of the reasons I fell in love with him. He had such a high sense of morality, though he used his sharp tongue more often than his fists."

She seemed lost in thought for a moment and Kyoko was surprised to hear about her father's days as a trouble maker. Well, she always knew he had a high sense of justice, he was a lawyer, after all!

Suddenly, she was hit by a wave of nostalgia. Oh, how she missed her father!

"Though he could throw a mean punch, don't get me wrong, your dad was no defenseless man." She smiled. "But despite all the trouble he got into, he never hurt me or got me into trouble. I never got pulled into his mess and he never failed to protect me. What I'm saying is, even if Hitoshi thinks you might be in danger around Kuon-kun, I believe you when you say you're not."

Kyoko let out a breath of relief and she smiled at her mother. "Thank you, I was worried you'd ask me to stop talking to him or something, he's one of the few friends I have at school." Two friends, Kyoko thought bitterly. Not that she wasn't thankful for their presence in her life, it was just that she considered the measly number a personal failure at making friends.

Her mother smiled mysteriously and stared at her for a few seconds. "Is that all what he is? Just a friend?"

Kyoko hoped that she wasn't blushing but even if she wasn't her stuttering gave her away. "What do you...? I mean, of course he's just...Okaa-san!" First Moko-san, now her mother too! What is it with everyone and seeing things where they aren't present!

Saena chuckled and kissed Kyoko's forehead. "Oh, calm down you goof ball! I've seen the way you look at him."

Kyoko was mortified. Had she really been that transparent? Did her feelings show so obviously? She knew she enjoyed Kuon's company and she admired him too, but that was all there is to it! what her mother saw must've been her admiration for him… and, well, maybe some attraction. But, still! To have displayed her feelings so openly! In front of her family no less!

"Well, I just want to put this out there. I approve of him." Saena declared, pinching Kyoko's cheek.

"There's nothing to approve of, Okaa-san. I'm not looking to get in a relationship anytime soon." Or ever, Kyoko added to herself.

Her mother's expression softened considerably and her playful smile turned compassionate. "Honey, just because Shotaro was an idiot and let you down, doesn't mean that Kuon-kun will be the same. You don't have to put your heart under lock and key." She reached a hand to caress Kyoko's cheek.

"I...I'll think about it." Kyoko said, swallowing the lump that was lodged in her throat. She would have said anything to put an end to that talk to be honest but in fact, there was nothing to think about. Her decision was made a long time ago. She will not lose to love again.

But having this talk with her mother was a good thing. At least now, she knew she had to hide her feelings better.

Her mother must've sensed her withdrawal as she stood up, kissed her cheek and told her that she would speak to Hitoshi and tell him to get off Kyoko's back about her relationship with Kuon. Yes, having this talking was definitely a good thing.

* * *

 **A/N: It appears the lady is in denial... I wonder how long she'll stay there...**

 **It was a breath of fresh air to write from my own POV for once, it really helps getting out from those two's minds XD**

 **Let me know what you guys thought of this chapter and remember the magical formula, reviews=update speed XD #YourShamelessWriter**

 **Michiyo:** Ah, damn, my fic makes you go into fangirl mode? You'll make me cry XD And yuuuup, the plan was to make Sho much worse than the Manga version! Yes, tbh, I want her to see how cute Kuon is but she just won't cooperate with me XDDDDD I'm very glad you loved the way I set things into motion, I'd probably squeal rn if my lil sis weren't studying right next to me lmao And yes, Kanae is probably the only ally I have when it comes to bringing those two together XD Thanks a lot for your awesome and long review, I love those!

 **Kris:** Lmao, yes! We all let out the metaphorical breath we were holding when he found out they are actually siblings, didn't we? LMAO I WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOU SLAP SHO! Yes, making her spray them with water was very satisfying even to me XDDDDDDD An I love your reviews! Thank you so much!

 **Guest:** Omg, I'm pretty glad you're getting excited and enjoying this fic! Keep the enthusiasm! Hope you enjoyed this chapter... did you? XD I'll sure do my best updating, so do your best to leave me more cute reviews like that one, okey? Thanks a lot!

 **Erza:** Lmao, glad you had fun at the explanation part XD I enjoyed all the awkwardness and discomfort too XDDDDDDDD Well, damn! Now I really am gonna cry, you're the second person saying they're starting to like this more than the original and I'm trying to keep my head from getting out of proportion XD Lmao, you'll enjoy seeing Kuon getting his ego bruised? well, I have to admit that I love bruising egos XDDDDD I love him too, don't worry XD Awhh, take care too! Be safe, happy and at peace! Hope you enjoyed this update! Thanks a lot for your review!

 **Julie:** Lol, yes! what a Jerrrrk, right? And yeah! He'll get his butt kicked soon enough, let's hope! I honestly don't know! How could he, she's so nice and cute! ARGH! Lmao I'm very glad you shared your rage fit with me, thanks a lot for your review!

 **Sara:** XDDD Yes, I think we would all have felt confused had we gotten texts like that without any context XD And, indeed, jerk would be the word for Sho, nothing else can be used, not out of Kuon's POV at least xD Lmao and yeah it appears I did manage to make him even worse from y'all's response XD Thanks a lot for your review, hope you enjoyed this chapter!

 **Sam:** Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it! LMAO yes, yes, it is totally safe to say we all agree on that fact, Sho is a JERK and I would also have loved being the one spraying him XD We're all rooting for Kyoko to drag his butt, yeah? XD Thank you very much for your review!

 **Hey, yo I was gonna keep this a surprise but in the next chapter, Kyoko will go to Kuon's house, all those in favor of Kyoko meeting Kuu and Julie say YEAAAAAAAAAH XD (Yes, that totally was an attempt at blackmailing you guys for reviews, don't like it? FIGHT ME... ok, no, pls don't I'm sensitive and I might cry XD)**


	7. Chapter 7

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hey guys! So, apparently and according to my story stats, someone lost patience and took it upon themselves to review multiple times to get me to update XD I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to push you to your limits but I do appreciate your effort and since technically, you are my 100th reviewer, this chapter is dedicated to you my lovely guest reader with the 10 aliases xD

Thank you to **bboo-berry** for once again doing her magic editing this chapter! We love you!

I have mixed feelings about this chapter, I find it bitter sweet, but I'll let you judge for yourselves, enjoy!

Oh, and by the way, expect a couple of cuss words since this is told from or boi, Kuon's POV XD

* * *

 _ **Previously...**_

 _Her mother's expression softened considerably and her playful smile turned compassionate. "Honey, just because Shotaro was an idiot and let you down, doesn't mean that Kuon-kun will be the same. You don't have to put your heart under lock and key." She reached a hand to caress Kyoko's cheek._

 _"I...I'll think about it." Kyoko said, swallowing the lump that was lodged in her throat. She would have said anything to put an end to that talk to be honest but in fact, there was nothing to think about. Her decision was made a long time ago. She will not lose to love again._

 _But having this talk with her mother was a good thing. At least now, she knew she had to hide her feelings better._

 _Her mother must've sensed her withdrawal as she stood up, kissed her cheek and told her that she would speak to Hitoshi and tell him to get off Kyoko's back about her relationship with Kuon. Yes, having this talking was definitely a good thing._

* * *

 **Ch7: New people and then some**

 _ **Kuon's POV**_

After clearing out the outrageous –and super embarrassing- misunderstanding with Kyoko, I felt like I was free. Free to feel and show my feelings. Free to spend as much time with her as I wanted. Free to think up ways to get her to like me back. But Kyoko was a tough nut to crack, she managed to ignore every attempt I made at flirting with her and brushed me off on every turn.

When she told me about her ex, I understood much better why she was acting that way. It must've been very tough for her to go through something like that and I didn't want to push her, so I decided to be her friend if that's what she needed me to be at the moment. It was much easier for me to think that way, when I knew for a fact that she doesn't have anyone in her life and that I still stood a chance.

That way, I could take my time earning her trust and building a solid friendship with her before trying to make it into something more. The only issue was the possibility of her rejecting me even after she felt well enough to attempt another relationship. After giving it enough thought though, and remembering how I wanted her around even when I thought she was taken, I decided that I wouldn't let that come between us. I've also come to think of her as a very close friend to me and I wasn't going to let anything change that.

So it would make perfect sense that I bring her home and introduce her to my parents.

...

As a friend. Y'know?

Because that's what friends do, right?

I mean, she introduced me to her family so why shouldn't I do the same. We also need to meet up frequently to study and we've already met up over four times at her place, so it's only fair we meet up at my place at least once, right? Now if I could only get it through my parents' _thick skulls_ that she's just a friend and not a candidate for "Future daughter in law."... for now at least.

"Here, have some more biscuits, dear." My mom said, grinning from cheek to cheek.

"Thank you Mrs. Hizuri." Kyoko politely replied in English. She had the cutest accent and my mother made sure she was made well aware of that fact.

"Would you like some more tea Kyoko-Chan?" Dad decided it was ok to speak in Japanese at home, since we were having a Japanese guest, but I think all it did is make Kyoko confused.

"No, thank you Hizuri-san, you're very kind." She said, switching to Japanese and smiled at both of them.

"You know what?" Mom said, cheerfully clapping her hands together. "Why don't we just drop the formalities? Let's talk like family, Kuu and I already think of you as our daughter, honey."

I tried really hard not to groan, this is so embarrassing! WTF MOM! YOU'VE MET HER LIKE FIFTEEN MINUTES AGO!

"O-okay." Kyoko blinked nervously and put her teacup on the table, primly brushing her hands over her skirt. She shot me a nervous glance, not sure what she was supposed to do.

"Let's talk about your and Kuon's relationship!" My mother beamed at her.

SOMEONE, PLEASE SHOOT ME NOW!

"Oh, I- I'm not sure…" When she turns to look at me for help, I decided to put an end to it all. It would be the merciful thing to do for the both of us.

"Let's not." I say, grabbing her hand and pulling her to her feet. "She's not here to chat, she's here to study. _With me_." I say shooting a pointed look at both my parents before I start leading Kyoko away.

"You can't keep her to yourself forever, Kuon!" My mother hissed in Russian. I turned to look at her incredulously, eyebrows creased in shock and mouthed "What even?" Slowly shaking my head in amazement before turning around the corner to go up to my room.

"Sorry about that!" I said, wiping my hands on my pants awkwardly. I knew it would be a trial to get Kyoko to meet my parents but I didn't think mom would straight out confess to her!

Kyoko smiled kindly at me. "No trouble, your parents are really nice."

"If not a little crazy…" I murmured.

"What?"

"What?" I sharply looked up. Didn't expect her to hear that. "Nothing. Let's study!" I inwardly curse myself for not telling her to sit down already. "You can sit anywhere you like." I guess I really am my parents' son, huh?

She chortled and sat on my bed facing my desk -which also served as my nightstand table- sideways. "Someone's in a hurry to show off his Kanji!"

I managed to let out a nervous laugh, when I succeeded in letting go of the fact that Kyoko is in my room, sitting on my bed. I had left the door open, mainly to make it harder for my parents to eavesdrop and I'm starting to think that it'll also get _me_ to behave.

Alright, enough of all that, it's time to focus and study!

"Right! Kanji!" I sit at my desk and pull out my textbook and notebooks, Kyoko did the same and when we were all set up, the studying session took off.

"How old are these flash cards?" Kyoko says, flipping one of the said cards in her hand and examining it critically.

"Those are the ones you made for me."

"Seriously? We've covered a shitload of material since then!" She sighs. "Don't tell Toshi I said that, he doesn't approve of me cussing."

I laugh at that, earning an unimpressed glare from her. "Do you need his approval? You always seem to do things he _doesn't_ approve of to poke fun at him."

"Well, I normally don't. But he started snitching and even though mom's scolding doesn't bother me much, I don't want Ryouta ji-san to think badly of me. I have the decency to feel embarrassed when word reaches him."

"Understandable." I don't want Ryouta-san to think of me and he's nothing to me… yet.

"Anyway, we need to make a new deck, these are pretty worn out anyway."

* * *

An hour later, we were doing trig. Kyoko hated it, but she was getting better with every quiz we solved. Mom came in while we were at it, with a tray of sandwiches and juice, conveniently forgetting that we'd already had tea when Kyoko arrived that morning.

"Just a little snack to keep you energized before lunch!" She said.

"Mom! You made us… sandwiches...?" I testily asked, praying that it was actually dad who had made them.

"Yes! I made them extra pretty for our pretty guest!" She said, directing a sickeningly sweet smile at Kyoko who blushed and thanked her for the compliment.

They were _not_ pretty. I don't know how Kyoko managed to not be offended by that but I was grateful all the same when she thanked my mother for her care, it seemed to mean a lot to mom.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Dig in!" She said, gesturing at the tray.

"Okay!" I quickly snatched one of the weirdly cut sandwiches and bit into it.

"Yum! Thanks mom!"

 _Don't grimace. Don't grimace. Don't you dare grimace!_

"We'll eat them while we do some more work, I don't want us to lose focus." _Please, please, pleaaase buy that!_

"Of course! I'll leave you to it!"

Mom practically skipped out of the room with a smile plastered on her face. When she was gone, I swallowed the lump of food with a small amount of discomfort and when Kyoko reached for one of the sandwiches I only saw it fit to warn her.

"You might wanna forgo the sandwiches."

"Oh, why?"

"They're what you would call an _acquired taste_." One I still haven't acquired after 17 years of life as Julienna Hizuri's son.

"I'm sure they're ok, you're just being difficult." She took one anyway.

Well, I tried.

It was fun seeing the battle between her jaw and her tongue unfold as she struggled while she chewed on her first bite. After having a few meals at the Matsudas', I was sure Kyoko was used to high quality food so this must really have been a trial for her. To her credit though, she kept her face as neutral as she could and she didn't spit the cardboard-like sandwich out and her face didn't twist in any sort of disgusted expression. She only looked very pale and blinked a lot.

"Well… I mean… I'm sure there's worse!" She said weakly and I burst out laughing.

"That's nice of you to say, but let's face it, it's not something any of us would _willingly_ eat."

"You're so mean! She seemed very happy with them!"

"I know and I love her but I'd have to rinse my mouth with acid before I can say anything she makes tastes good."

At Kyoko's disbelieving look, I added. "Don't worry, though, dad's the one cooking lunch today." She exasperatedly shook her head at me and got back to the quiz we were working on.

* * *

Soon enough –a little too soon- we were called down for lunch. Kyoko took the seat beside mine, while my parents sat facing us. Dad made a classic American lunch: asparagus, hamburger steak with an egg on top, and mashed potatoes. Simple but he made it work. He said it would be a change for Kyoko from having Japanese dishes. She complimented the food and ate happily. My parents made sure to bombard her with questions to my growing embarrassment.

"And what do your parents do for a living, Kyoko-chan?" Dad asked. I don't know why it mattered to be honest. Like **?!**

"My father used to be a lawyer when he was alive, my mother and step-father are reporters for a lifestyle magazine here in Tokyo." She smiled politely.

My parents expressed their sympathy and Kyoko gracefully thanked them. It didn't stop them from asking more questions though.

"How did you and Kuon meet?" Mom asked making alarms go off in my head. Dad was my go-to guy when I'm in trouble, if she hears I'd been in a fight, she'd flip! And I'd never hear the end of it! Oh, man! The last time she heard of it, I got grounded for a month!

"I met him at school, we're in the same class!" She smiled at me enthusiastically. _Actual angel_ Mogami Kyoko, ladies and gentlemen!

"Oh, so you're in the same class! That's nice!"

"Yes, he's even seated in the desk in front of me!"

Mom and Kyoko chattered some more about how cool it was for us to be friends and classmates. I tended to agree but I wouldn't make that much of a fuss about it...

Okay, that's a lie, I'm totally thrilled to have her so close!

She kept talking with them through the meal, while I listened and watched in pain, hoping beyond hope that they wouldn't say anything too embarrassing but Kyoko seemed to be at ease and that was a relief.

It was actually amazing how she could handle different mentalities so well. Hitoshi and Rick being idiots, Kotonami-senapi being a tsundere, and my parents being, well, my parents! It just seemed like you could throw anything her way and she wouldn't be surprised or uneasy. Well, unless you say embarrassing stuff like coming to think of her as a daughter 15 minutes after meeting her… but then again, who wouldn't?

We did some more studying in the afternoon, chatting absently now and then before Kyoko said it was time for her to leave. Apparently, she and Hito-nii had plans on cleaning the basement and turning it into a "chilling space", his word not hers and she seemed pretty excited about it.

"I'll walk you home. I wanna meet up with Rick anyway. I think I've earned a break, haven't I?" I grinned at her, shrugging a jacket on as she packed her stuff.

"You sure did!" She grinned. "Only got 3 out of 15 words wrong this time."

"I got all the dates right, though!"

"Sure! A for effort." She teased.

* * *

After making sure she got home safe before it got too dark, I headed to Rick's. He lived a bit far from the Matsudas' so it took me a while before I got there and it was basically nighttime by then. Being as "lucky" as I am, I didn't find him home. I texted him asking where he was and he said he'd been doing some work in the library down town, we agreed to meet at an arcade we usually hang at and I jumped on the train heading to town.

I guess I used up all my "good fortune" points when I had Kyoko come over, because this day was taking a turn for the worse. When I got out of the train and started walking towards our meeting spot, I ran into a bunch of clowns who thought it was fun to bait the blond foreigner. And to think I was making progress controlling my temper after Kyoko showed up!

I'm not an idiot, I know how protective Hito-nii can be when it comes to her, I still can't believe he didn't straight out forbid her from even talking to me, a fact I was grateful for and did my best to maintain, which is why I made sure to be on my best behavior since my last fight. But these fucktards might ruin everything I've worked so hard for. I made a decision then. Right before I threw my first punch, I shot Rick a text saying something came up at home and that I got called back. Whatever happens today, Hito-nii can't hear about it.

Naturally, the odds weren't in my favor in this particular fight. I was outnumbered in a place I only ever passed by on normal days, which turned into a dark alley at that time of night, so I was also caught in unfamiliar surroundings.

I did manage to win the fight, this wasn't my first brawl after all, but I didn't get away unscathed. I groaned as I examined my lip in a nearby public bathroom's mirror. Those dudes made sure to aim at "My pretty face" as they put it, besides the lip cut and bruised knuckles, I could see my jaw starting to swell and a large bruise was showing on my left cheekbone. What a mess!

* * *

Somehow my feet lead me to the last place I was supposed to be seen at that night, the Matsuda residence. I hopped over their fence and stood under Kyoko's window like a fucking character from some romantic play. I didn't sink so low as to throw pebbles though, instead I sent her a text.

 _'Are you awake?'_

 _'Hey! Can't sleep? (◕‿◕✿)'_

 _'Would you believe me if I said I was standing outside your window, right now?'_

 _'Lol, nice try'_

 _'Well... (¬‿¬)'_

 _'Seriously?!'_

I then saw a dim light flicker through her window right after the exchange of texts, moments before the sheer curtains were ripped aside. Kyoko's face shortly came into view.

I sighed. There's my angel. Seeing her made my face hurt a bit less.

"Kuon? What are you doing here at this time?!" She half whispered-half yelled loud enough for me to hear, but not so loud as to wake anyone at her house.

I just shrugged and smiled up at her, well, tried to smile before wincing at my stinging lip. Naturally, she gasped at the sight of my swollen and bruised face.

"And what happened to you?!"

I mouthed the word fight and she eyed me worriedly before gesturing for me to wait and going back inside.

A few moments later, she snuck out through the living room's balcony, carefully sliding the floor-to-ceiling glass door open and closed again. She was wrapped in a fluffy robe that I hoped would keep her warm enough, and she was holding something under her arm.

"What happened?" She asked, anxiously scrutinizing my face in the dim light provided by a lamppost nearby.

"I ran into some trouble."

I unwillingly grinned at her close distance. She clucked her tongue and shook her head at me. She reached for my hand, carefully avoiding contact with the raw skin of my knuckles and led me to a wooden table set in their yard.

She put the small cardboard box she was holding under her arm on the table and started getting first aid supplies out.

"Did you eat?" She whispered.

I sheepishly shook my head no.

"I figured as much. I brought you this, you need to eat before taking the painkillers." She said, pulling out a pot of peach flavored yogurt and a small spoon from the box as well as a small pill bottle.

"I was gonna make you a sandwich with whatever leftovers we had, but I thought chewing wouldn't feel so great right now."

I practically beamed at her –something that couldn't have looked good when I was using my battered face to do it. How could she have thought about everything in such a short while?

"Thank you." I said.

She sighed exasperatedly and nodded at me. "Let me work on your face while you eat. We'll do the hands next."

She pulled out cotton balls, a bottle containing some sort of antiseptic, ointment, and a small box of band aids.

I started eating the yogurt, when she got closer to me and leaned in to get a closer look at my face. Being the lovesick idiot that I am, my movements came to a halt and I swallowed with a gulp as I stared into her eyes. She didn't display any signs that said she had noticed, so I snapped out of it and tried to act cool... that is, I kept eating.

She turned back to the box and pulled out a pack of cooling gel and pressed it to the side of my face, where it covered my bruised cheekbone and swollen jaw. I was quickly done with the pot of yogurt and popped out a couple of pills into my mouth before taking the cold pack from her. Kyoko then soaked a cotton ball with the antiseptic and gently dabbed my lip with it. I flinched away in pain and she rolled her eyes at me.

"I'm gonna need you to stay still for a sec, Kuon." She said tiredly.

"It stings." I complained like a three-year-old.

"I know it does, but the more you squirm the more time it'll take and the more uncomfortable it would feel." She lightly moved my head back in place with a hand under my chin.

I knew I was acting like a spoiled brat, but this is the first time I actually _enjoyed_ having my injuries treated. Mom always yelled and nagged when she did it, dad teased me with words like "If I punch your other eye, you'll be able to do a cosplay of Kung Fu panda!" and Rick wasn't exactly a sight for sore eyes.

"Now, I'll just rub some ointment on it, try not to move, ok?" She said absently, unscrewing the tube and squirting some of the ointment into her forefinger. She narrowed her eyes in concentration and tended to the cut on my lip. Once she was done, she covered it with one of those tiny band aides people use on shaving nicks. When she was satisfied with her work, she grabbed my hand and repeated the process for both of my hands.

When she put on the last band aid, she pulled a plastic bag from the box, threw the yogurt pot, band aid wrappers and used cotton balls in and packed the first aid supplies away. She then looked up at me. "Are you gonna tell me what happened?" She said, looking searchingly into my eyes.

I give her a lopsided smile and shrugged. "The usual."

"What exactly is " _the usual_ "?" She narrowed her eyes at me.

I exhaled, pensively watching the cloud of steam that formed from the action. "Well, here's the drill: I run into some idiots, they taunt me, I take the bait and we fight."

"Why do you care so much about what they say anyway?" She asks. "I don't think I've seen you like this since the first time we spoke."

"I don't know. Quick temper, I guess."

She huffs out a laugh at that and looks to the side, rolling her eyes. I smile. At least she doesn't seem so mad anymore.

"I'm sorry I showed up here without a heads up."

"Oh, well. What are friends for?" She playfully bumps my knee with hers. "I'm really worried, though."

Oh. So she wasn't mad, she was _worried_. That's good to know. I tuck that bit of information in the back of my mind for future reference. Yes, by now I have cataloged Kyoko's every expression. Creepy? I think so too.

"I'm sorry." I murmur. "You should get back inside before someone wakes up and notices you're not in your room." I get up and give back the bag of cooling gel.

"Keep it, we have a _shitload_ of those, anyway." She winks playfully and smirks and I grin back at her.

"Good night, Kyoko."

"Yeah, good night, warrior."

* * *

 **A/N: If any of you will tell me that Kyoko wouldn't say "Shitload" I'd like to remind you that this is the same girl who gave Ren the middle finger in the Manga XD**

 **Kris:** Well, what did you think of her meeting the Hizuris? XD I really love your reviews! they're always so nice and cute and make me feel so happy! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, thanks a lot for reviewing!

 **Michiyo:** Oh. My. God. Your little verse actually made me grin like an idiot for so long I feared my face was stuck! It definitely made my heart glee! XD I'm sorry I made you stay up XD It's an honor to have you as a fangirl, it makes me crazy giddy XD I'm glad you enjoyed the update, I hope this one was just as good! Yes! Protective Hitoshi is pretty amusing, I like giving him trouble in my head XD Lmao, Kenzo will probably come to approve of Kuon if he saw him fight and think he's pretty cool, hmmm... food for thoughts XD We'll just allow them to think that we're buying their 'friends' act for now but we know better don't we ;) you are most welcome! I started writing fanfic because I got tired myself so it's good to know I'm bringing some relief to other people besides myself XDDD I hope you enjoyed her meeting the parents! Thank you so much for your review!

 **Guest:** Awwww! I'm so glad you're finding everyone cute and amusing, that's what I'm going for! LMAO you made me laugh! What is Hitoshi doing indeed! he should worry about his own crush XD I love love loveee your review! Thank you so much for giving this fic a chance!

 **sara:** Here's chapter 7! What did you think of it? did you enjoy the bits with Kuu and Julie? I really hope this was entertaining for you! Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!

 **My special guest with the multiple names :** Well, what can I say? You are SO CUTE AND I JUST LOVE YOU! I'm really sorry that I made you take desperate measures but I really do love all your reviews! I'm sorry if I wasn't supposed to say this but you did leave 9 reviews with 2 minutes between each one so ... and I think it's too adorable I can't help but being like this XD I'll just reply to bits of every review, okey? I hope you enjoyed the meet, I'm glad you like how I made Saena, and no actually, they're not trying to get between them they just want to make sure Kuon knows Kyoko has people who would protect her and that he should think twice before hurting her, not that he ever would, of course! Hitoshi's family never met Kuon before because their friendship doesn't go that far back, Kuon only became friends with Hitoshi through Rick when he came to study in Japan a couple of years ago as an exchange student and it's common for boys their age to text each other about where they should meet to hang out instead of going to each other's houses (well, except for Rick because he lives by himself) Lory, Maria, Yashiro and the Ishibashi brothers will all show up in the future chapters, not too soon though! Again, thank you so much for all the reviews, I'm not sure which one of your namesakes I should use, and if I didn't know better I'd think I made you up but I know you're out there and I love you


	8. Chapter 8

**I do no own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello everyone, I hope you guys are in good health!

This is both an apology and a heads up as to the frequency of the updates! I took a while to update and will probably be taking longer to do it from now on for a number of good reasons **(Which you should skip if you don't really want an explanation XD),** as some of you who follow me on tumblr might know, I have a part time job doing small translation jobs and that takes time and effort; in addition, school's officially back in the little corner of the world I live in and this is a particularly challenging year for me because we're getting what's the equivalent of a bachelor's degree this year and we have to make a project (that means a lot of coding!) and to top it all off, I have been diagnosed with cervical arthrosis (Yes, at 20!) which means that I have my neck stuck in a cervical collar for a month, a situation that has rendered my ability to study, work and write very limited as all of these require the use of my laptop (Which I can only use on a desk now, sitting upright on a hard chair that hurts my butt XD) or my phone (and since the doctor prohibited me from any form of texting, that's out of the question too) so yeah, that's why I took a million light years to update and that's mainly why I will take a few more millions to post the chapter that comes after this one too! I hope you guys understand would it be too much to ask to keep me in your prayers? Pretty please?

On a lighter note, this chapter is made entirely of ridiculous fluff, comedy and ...food! So warning! You should read this on a full stomach (or have something to munch on while reading it!)

As always you guys and I are very grateful to the beautiful **bboo-berry** for beta reading and editing this chapter for us, aren't we?

Enjoy!

* * *

 ** _Previously..._**

 _"I'm sorry I showed up here without a heads up."_

 _"Oh, well. What are friends for?" She playfully bumps my knee with hers. "I'm really worried, though."_

 _Oh. So she wasn't mad, she was worried. That's good to know. I tuck that bit of information in the back of my mind for future reference. Yes, by now I have cataloged Kyoko's every expression. Creepy? I think so too._

 _"I'm sorry." I murmur. "You should get back inside before someone wakes up and notices you're not in your room." I get up and give back the bag of cooling gel._

 _"Keep it, we have a shitload of those, anyway." She winks playfully and smirks and I grin back at her._

 _"Good night, Kyoko."_

 _"Yeah, good night, warrior."_

* * *

 **Ch8: Hang out**

 _ **Kyoko's POV**_

It's the end of the school year and Spring is doing its wonders. The sky is sunny, the weather is warm, and the trees are in full bloom. Moko-san has officially graduated high school and her entrance exams for uni went well. Kuon and I are moving up a grade as life goes on. So, to celebrate this progress for us all, we're going out with Rick and Hitoshi for lunch and ice cream.

Well, that's the "official plan", but the fact is, we're celebrating Moko-san's graduation and we're trying to spend as much time with her as possible before all of us need to go back to school, which is soon. At least, that is the case for me and Kuon, because Hitoshi will be seeing plenty of her if he grows a… err... backbone and gathers enough courage to make a move. After all, she'll be studying at the same uni as he is.

"Aren't you done already? I'm sure Kuon-kun will find you really pretty even if you don't spend all that time facing a mirror." My brother's voice comes grating on my -previously calm, pacified, and happy- nerves. The way he says "Kuon-kun" with his hands on his cheeks and making a face worthy of a classic Shoujo manga heroine, makes me want to puke. The remark earns him a wet towel in the face, which he takes, unfazed.

"What? It's not like your dolling up for me or Rick." He sniggers, and I growl at him, sending him a glare through the mirror.

Since Moko-san had to spend a lot of time studying at home and at cram school, I only ever hung out with Kuon at school. With that, and all the studying we did together, we naturally grew closer. Even though we both have a silent agreement that we've become best friends- especially after he showed at my house after his fight- people around us seem to mistake our closeness for something more, my imbecile of a brother, being one of them. After my mother told him to lay back on the protectiveness, he started to express his "interest" in my relationship with Kuon through more childish means. Teasing, being his weapon of choice.

"What? Too excited to see Kanae again?" I tease him back, not afraid to poke at his insecurities. Two can play this game... Not that he had managed to poke at my insecurities, mind you!

"Well, she is the guest of honor, isn't she?" He says, looking at his nails like a damned diva, probably thinking he's oh-so-smooth with that recovery, but I'm having none of it.

"You're not fooling anyone, big bro." I grin at him through the mirror and that seems to have worked as he straightens his back, clears his throat, and makes a show of turning and looking behind him. "I think Ba-san's calling me, hurry up with getting ready." He mutters before retreating from the battle field.

Coward.

I finish getting ready after putting on a hint of blush and a coat of mascara. Moko-san picked a very nice lip gloss for me and I put some of that on too, it matches my peach sundress that Moko-san said suited my complexion. What can I say? I have complete trust in her when it comes to fashion and cosmetic products. I turn my head to the side, taking one last look at my French braid –thank god for YouTube tuts!- and pick up my bag and go downstairs to join a very giddy Toshi.

"Have fun, honey!" My mother shouts from the kitchen. Since we were eating out, the duty of making lunch had fallen to her for once.

"You too!" At Hitoshi's snicker, I realize how stupid that reply was. "I mean, thanks Okaa-san!"

I hear my mother chuckle as she pokes her head out of the kitchen door and I smile sheepishly at her. She shakes her head affectionately as she says, "You look very pretty, honey."

"Thank you." I smile brightly at her and she winks before walking right back inside. I'm not even going to try to make sense of that wink. My mother is also one of the people who's reading too much into my relationship with Kuon and I'm sure that mysterious wink had something to do with that.

When Toshi and I make it to the car, he looks at me with an infinitely amused smirk and says "Wasn't that the equivalent of telling a waiter "You too." When they say, "Enjoy your food."?"

"Just shuddup and drive, Toshi!"

* * *

When we reached the food joint that we agreed to meet at, we found Kuon and Rick already there sipping on some ice coke and looking bored out of their minds as they waited on the rest of us.

"Sup!" I clapped Kuon -who perked up at seeing us- on the back and nudged him to move over on the U-shaped cushioned bench in our booth. Hitoshi sat next to Rick and the two of them were now facing us.

"You look nice." Kuon said looking at me, smiling cheek to cheek and I couldn't help but smile right back at him.

"Can we not hit on my little sister while I'm sitting here, please?" Said Hitoshi with a groan and a mock grimace.

"I'm just complimenting my friend, you dumbass!" Kuon retorts with a good-humored laugh.

"Yes, it's not our fault you keep seeing romance everywhere you go!" I added to the argument, smiling meaningfully. I'm sure he caught what I was alluding at.

"You two are gonna get it, one day." My brother says, pointing at us scoldingly for teasing him only to have us laugh at his halfhearted threat.

"Speak of the devil." Rick murmurs with a slight smirk before throwing back the rest of his coke and Hitoshi sits straighter as his gaze is drawn by something -or rather someone- behind us, this makes me and Kuon turn in our seats, only to see Moko-san coming our way.

She looked _glorious_! She was clad in a white summer dress with a red flower pattern and cork wedge sandals. She kept her hair down and she was holding a big, white floppy hat with one hand and tuckingher sunglasses in her bag with the other. She looked like one of those movie stars photographed by the paparazzi on their way to the airport.

"Mo! It's barely the end of March, why is it so sunny outside!" She says as she taps my arm, making me and Kuon move over. "Haven't you guys ordered yet?" She says as she plops down on the seat.

"Kyoko and I also just got here." Hitoshi says, winking at me and making me roll my eyes. As if the one he wanted to wink at wasn't actually Moko-san, who now sat facing him. I swear, sometimes I think this guy is bullshitting his way through life and the crazy thing is, he's getting away with it!

"Oh, alright then let's ask for some menus." Moko-san then turns to Kuon and her eyes flicker from his face to his glass of coke. "Can I?" She says, taking the glass and pushing the straw to the side to drink from the rim before he even gets the chance to say anything.

"Sure… knock yourself out." He says grinning and shaking his head as he watches her drain his glass to the last drop.

"Ah! Thanks." She happily sighs, looking all refreshed now. No one is surprised by her behavior. After hanging out together as often as we got the chance to, everyone got used to everyone's antics… well, maybe not everyone... Toshi looks a bit jealous, if the glares he's throwing Kuon's way are any indication. Rick must've kicked his foot under the table, because I see him jump up a bit before turning his glare at him. Kuon just rolls his eyes and waves at the waitress, who heads to our table with some menus. She comes back when Rick signals her and pulls out a small notebook to take our orders.

"I'll have the chicken quesadilla and fries." After learning to loosen up with her eating habits a bit, Moko-san became the first of us to order when we decided to eat out. I wish I was half as sure of what I want as she is...

"I think I'll have… the fish bur-NO! the spicy chicken burger and… fries?" I say, stammering.

"No fries, we'll share mine. Get her a cheese burger and chicken nuggets instead." Moko-san intervenes. "Chicken is chicken and this way we'll get to share the nuggets too." She says making me smile at her.

The waitress jots down our orders and turns to the boys.

"I'll take the spicy chicken burger then." Kuon says and smiles teasingly at me as he nudges me with his shoulder. "This way you can try it too." I blush at that but don't refuse his offer, I'm always up for more food. "And I'll have some curly fries."

"Curly fries?! Dude! They taste just like the regular ones!" Rick says.

"Then what's the big problem with having them?" Kuon interjects before turning back to Kanae and me. "Would you girls be up to sharing a pizza too?" I nod eagerly and Kanae groans probably calculating all the calories but doesn't protest. "And a pizza, half vegetarian with no cheese and half pepperoni with extra cheese please."

That seems to make Moko-san feel better as she smiles at him, approvingly. "Hizuri, you know me so well."

"We'll have the mega pizza." Rick grins at Hitoshi who grins back like it's such a big deal. Dorks!

"Quarter pepperoni and quarter pineapple." There's a collective groan at the pineapple part and Kuon mutters "Gross, dude." But Rick doesn't let that stop him and he goes on with his order. "Extra cheese, please."

Hitoshi finishes the order for the other half of the pizza. "Quarter mushroom and chicken and quarter beef and pepper, please."

Before the waitress asks us about drinks I interject. "Oooh! Can we have mozzarella sticks?" I look pleadingly at Toshi and he nods, yes.

For drinks, Moko-san asks for an iced lemon tea, Kuon and I order cokes, Rick orders a 7up saying he already had a coke and Toshi orders a fresh orange juice.

"Are you guys sure you can finish that huge pizza?" Moko-san asks Rick and Toshi with a skeptic look.

Toshi smirks at Rick. "Oh, we'll finish it." I had no doubt about that, seeing him eat half the stuff he cooks at home, I'm sure that pizza won't last an hour.

"So, what are you majoring in?" Rick asks Kanae as we wait for our food.

"Graphic design." She answers, twirling the edge of her hat.

"Hey, that means your departments are right next to each other!" He elbows Toshi in the ribs.

Did I ever mention that Hitoshi is majoring in annimation? Well, he is. And Rick is a Japanese major, so there's that.

"Yeah…" Toshi snorts nervously.

"That means I'll be the only one without a buddy from the squad nearby." Rick adds, pouting comically.

While The three of them talked about university, Kuon and I scrolled down his Facebook feed, which was 95% memes, I tell you.

"Oh, this one's Toshi." I whisper pointing at a meme with a baby on it and a caption about being annoying. He snorts out a laugh, nodding in agreement.

"Rick can be like that too." He whispers back.

"Oi, what are you two talking about?" Rick says after a while, throwing a bread stick at us.

"Nonya business." Kuon says, picking up the bread stick and biting on it.

"They're just goofing over memes, like always." Moko-san says after a cursory look at Kuon's phone.

"Kyoko always captions either "me" or "same" when she shares memes, the funny thing is, she says it out loud too, right before she shares them." Toshi says, smiling like a school boy who just tattled about a classmate. Ugh, idiot!

"Really?" Rick laughs.

"Yeah!"

"Mo! How many times have I told you not to get caught being weird?" Moko-san throws her arm around me and laughs.

"Is that weird? I do that too." Kuon says, smiling sheepishly.

"Mo!" Moko-san laughs harder along with Rick and Hitoshi.

"I like to stay true to who I am. " I grin as Kuon and I high five proudly.

About ten minutes later, our food arrived. The chatter lessened a bit as we ate, save from stupid behaviors by Rick and Toshi as they dug in their giant pizza. Kuon was true to his word and gave me a bite of his burger, I insisted on giving him a bite of mine.

"Barf." Toshi said, when he saw the exchange and I threw a fry at him.

A little after that Toshi insisted on us trying the Mushroom and chicken topping; going on and on about how great they worked together and the only one that was impressed with it was Moko-san.

"You'll be ordering my pizza toppings for me, from now on." She says, and Rick nudges his shoulder. Kuon smirks and quotes uncle Ben saying, "With great powers comes great responsibility." Earning yet another breadstick in the face, this time, from Toshi. "Man, it sure rains a lot of breadsticks around here!" He says, undeterred.

All in all, we all had a great time having lunch at our get-together. The food was great, the company as well and I couldn't remember the last time I felt this happy.

* * *

Right after that, we decided to go to the movies. Apparently, Marvel released a new movie the boys wanted to watch.

Since only Kuon and I enjoy caramel popcorn, we sat next to each other, Toshi and Kanae did the same but not because of snack sharing, they were manipulated by Rick who seemed to be playing matchmaker between those two. Fine by me, maybe he can succeed, where I failed.

The movie we watched was another sequel to the Avengers movies and we all had our eyes fixated on the screen.

Once the movie ended, post credit scene and all, Moko-san and I said we wanted to go to the mall and the boys tagged along reluctantly.

"I love these!" I screech, and Moko-san asks me to try them on. _They_ were a pair of Club-master sunglasses and I might have fallen in love with them.

"They look good on you!" She says, taking a picture with her phone.

She tries a pair of Aviator sunglasses, then round ones before she settles on a grey pair of sculpt cat eye sunglasses and snaps a selfie. I have to say, nothing looks bad on her.

We begrudgingly put them back and moved on to the next shop. The boys seemed to be looking at some stuff as they animatedly talked, and we thought nothing of leaving them behind. After a little while, they caught up to us trying on some more stuff at a hat shop, they seemed to like a few hats themselves, caps mainly. They goofed around trying them on, and putting them on each other's heads.

That's how it went for about an hour and a half. We walked around the shops; tried stuff on; and moved along before we exited the mall to head to our favorite ice cream parlor. Yes, the one Moko-san and I went to when we hung out for the first time.

"Every time I leave a mall without buying something, I lose a little piece of my soul." Moko-san sighed, and I sympathetically nodded at her. I know the feeling.

"Well, then… good thing we got you girls something. We certainly wouldn't want your souls to vanish by the end of the month." Hitoshi butts in.

I'm not really sure how he managed to convince Rick and Kuon to buy us stuff, but I know why he wanted to buy something for Moko-san and it had nothing to do with her _soul_. You're getting grilled tonight, brother mine. Regardless, Moko-san and I accepted their gifts, which were the pairs of glasses we liked from the very first shop we went to. We thanked them enthusiastically, insisting on paying for the ice cream.

"I just don't get you, man." Kuon shakes Rick by the shoulder. "First, pineapple Pizza and now licorice ice cream? Have you no taste buds?" He shakes him even more violently and we can't help but laugh at his dramatic antics. "Get it together, man!"

"I don't wanna hear this from someone who enjoys caramel popcorn." Rick says, scooping another mouthful of his –err, questionably flavored- ice cream.

"HEY!"

"HEY!" Kuon and I both cry. "What's so wrong with that?" I add.

"It's just… so, _predictable_ , you know?" Rick points at my cup with his spoon. "Like cookies n' cream." Then he points at Kuon's. "And chocolate fudge."

I look at Toshi and Moko-san's cups. So maybe Speculoos and Matcha are less ... _traditional_ ice cream flavors, but they're hardly as weird as _licorice_!

"Mo! Just leave them alone," Moko-san said, spooning some more ice cream into her mouth. She looked like she was shooting an ice cream commercial when she was eating it and I knew I wasn't the only one who thought so. Half of Toshi's ice cream was melting, as he watched her eat. "And you're one to talk, you like mayonnaise." She then turned to Kuon.

"What the hell is so wrong with mayonnaise?" Kuon exclaimed, earning a smack on the head from both Rick and Toshi.

"Language!" The both said.

"Sorry, pops. Let me rephrase that, what the _heck_ is so wrong with mayonnaise?" He said rolling his eyes, making me snigger. Toshi really shouldn't worry about me that much, I heard much worse when I was with Sho, and Moko-san can say some pretty nasty words herself when it's just the two of us.

"Besides the fact that it's gross?" She quirks an eyebrow at him but he's unimpressed. "Hizuri, it's a beaten egg yolk with oil!" She says with growing disgust.

"So?"

"Ugh, never mind. I'm sure Rick feels the same way about licorice. So, all I'm saying is that we all should be more tolerant here." She flips her hair over her shoulder and turns her attention back to her ice cream cup.

I look at Kuon, who looks back at me, and shrugs pushing his cup my way. I smile gratefully and take some as he takes a spoonful from mine.

Rick and Moko-san watched our exchange with amused looks and Toshi smirked at us. "Want some of mine, princess?"

I ignore them, knowing exactly what they're thinking. Kuon doesn't seem bothered by it so why should I. "No, thanks."

"I do." Kuon jumps over the table to reach for the ice cream and Toshi saves his cup just in time, snatching it away.

"Are you a princess? No. So, hands off peasant." Toshi says, eyeing him coolly.

"I'll be your princess if you want." Kuon answers, batting his eyelashes comically.

Moko-san and I chortle at them and Rick just groans and watches in agony at who he calls "The two dumb apes", a surname that suited them, I must say.

When we all agreed it was time for us to go, Toshi offered to drop everyone home. Rick refused, saying he had plans for the night with another friend but Moko-san and Kuon accepted the ride gratefully. Kuon sat in the passenger seat because I insisted Moko-san and I sit in the back so that we can have more time before each of us goes home for the night.

We chat animatedly and discuss what we want to do in our break, Kuon and Toshi were singing along to some song –they sounded horrible, and they got half of the lyrics wrong-, and before we knew it, Toshi was parallel parking near Moko-san's house. "Well then, goodnight I guess." She says before turning to hug me. We all say our good nights as she leaves the car, thanking Hitoshi for the ride home.

My brother then turned to look at Kuon, narrowed his eyes at him and said. "I suddenly have the urge to drop you here and let you walk home."

"TOSHI!" I yell, smacking him on the head.

Kuon smirks at him and makes a show of tugging on his seat belt. "I'm afraid the princess has spoken, peasant."

* * *

"How exactly did you manage to convince Rick and Kuon to buy the glasses?" I asked as I munched on some chips.

Toshi, Kenzo and I were in our basement turned "chilling space". We were all huddled together on the couch. Toshi had his back leaned on the arm rest, with his legs bent up on the couch, I had my back leaned on his legs, and my head resting on his knees, while Kenzo snuggled to my side. We were marathoning Detective Conan as we indulged in snacks.

"Hmm?"

"You know, the sunglasses? I'm sure it was your idea." I said, snatching the remote and pausing the episode. Kenzo whined in protest but didn't say anything after I hugged him to me soothingly. "Just a moment, bunny." I said, kissing his little forehead. "It has sappy romantic written all over it and it reminds me of Ji-san. Like father like son, eh?"

"Well, once I got Kuon on board Rick was just a formality. It was actually me and Kuon who paid, Rick just agreed to keep silent about not participating, so that the two of us wouldn't looks too obvious... And sappy." He replied.

After our day out, he seemed less susceptible to be teased about Moko-san and just acted cool when I brought her up when we were doing the dishes after dinner.

"And, how did you manage to talk Kuon into it?" I threw my head backwards and looked at him suspiciously, though I'm not sure he managed to make out the expression my upside-down face was making.

He sighed deeply, rolling his eyes in exasperation. "Come on, princess let's not do this. You saw him at lunch today, you and I both know Kuon would agree to anything if you're involved. Buying you a pair of sunglasses wasn't much different from ordering a spicy chicken burger just so you can have a taste."

"Are you talking about Onee-chan's boyfriend?" Kenzo asked, sitting up enthusiastically.

"That's right, buddy!" Toshi beams at Kenzo and ruffles his hair.

"NO!" I throw the pillow that was by my feet backwards at Hitoshi. "Onee-chan doesn't have a boyfriend, bunny. Don't listen to him."

"Oh. Okay. Good, then you can stay with us forever." He murmured, lowering himself back to cuddle to my side.

"Of course! I'll always be with you, bunny!" I kiss his forehead and hit play on the remote, deciding not to talk anymore about that subject. So what if Kuon bought me sunglasses? we're friends! Best friends. I gave him a cooling pack when he was beat up and he gave me sunglasses. That's what friends do.

"I want Ai-chan to be my girlfriend." Kenzo says after a while, pointing at the TV screen, which now displayed the Junior detective league from the anime. Hitoshi chokes on his chips and I snicker.

"And why is that?"

"Because she's pretty and smart and she doesn't like the other kids, so I will be the only one she likes when she becomes my girlfriend."

I look down at him incredulously. My baby brother may have some issues...

* * *

 **A/N: Well? I might be less productive lately but I'm still as thirsty for reviews XDDDDDD also, KENZO HAS A NEW NICKNAME!**

 **I know, I know, this chapter didn't have much to forward the plot and as character development, but here's an advice, take the fluff while I'm still giving it... (If you picture a short young woman wearing a cervical collar saying that, it'll sound much less menacing xD)**

 **Kris:** I'm very happy that you enjoyed the parts with Kuu and Julie, they were very fun to write and yessss! Omg I really wanna see what Julie looks like in the manga too! You're too cute! I'm really happy my work helps you wait for the manga updates, writing helps me do that too so it's a win-win situation, eh? Thanks a lot for the review and for your kind words!

 **Amy:** Oh no! Honey, believe me when I said I found it cute, I meant it! I didn't think you were persistent nor impatient! I really loved each one of those reviews and I appreciate your effort and saying that you like my stories that much makes me so happy I can't stop grinning (You're so cute I just want to hug you! \\\\\\\\) I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter and had fun with Kuu and Julies, I hope this chapter was to your liking as well! Thanks a lot for the review!

 **Erza:** xD I feel so bad for making you wait! I'm sorry hun, I hope this chapter was fun for you! I'm very happy to hear that the previous one was to your liking and between you and I, I do enjoy writing Kuon's POV what with all the curses and emotional instability lmao I hope this update found you in good health, live you too! Thank you for the reviews!

 **Michiyo:** Lmao yup xD I did have the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet in mind when I wrote that XDDDDD I'm glad you enjoyed that part! And yes xD Julie has no chill lol Everything you said is so touching I can't even! You guys are just too good to me and every once in a while one of you says something beautiful about my writing and it makes it all so much more meaningful 3 Thank you so much for your review! Ps. I replied to your msg in tumblr! Can't wait to talk to you there if the time zones would have it xD

 **reader4life:** First of all, can i say how much I love your guest name? That's the spirit! Keep reading buddy! And i'm glad you enjoyed this story enough to want more hope you liked this chapter! Thanks for the review!

 **Sara:** Hey! Did you enjoy this update? Hope you did! Thanks a lot for reading and reviewing it means a lot!


	9. Chapter 9

**I do not own Skip Beat!**

* * *

Hello, people! Look who's back! I missed you guys! I missed writing! I'm sorry it took me so long but I swear it wasn't done willingly! I had two other projects to work on besides my graduation project and I got through the school year with the grace of a skating blind elephant… not that graceful x)

I'd like to thank all the well-wishers and everyone's sweet words for me to get better and be at ease, I couldn't have made it without you For everyone who's wondering, my neck is much better now and I managed to get through this school years with relatively good grades! I finally have my bachelor's degree! Aaaaand I'm going back for more because I'm an academic masochist and would like to get beat up some more and lose whatever's left of my mental sanity trying to get my master's XDDDDDDDDD

Anywayyyy, here's your new update! Hope you'll Enjoy it! Thanks to **bboo-berry** , the sweet angel who proofreads AND edits these chapters to make sure they get to you with as little silliness as possible!

PS: would you guys like me to start including the word count? I talk so much in the replies to the reviews that I'm afraid it may mislead some people XD Let me know if you want me to do that!

* * *

 ** _Previously…_**

 _"NO!" I throw the pillow that was by my feet backwards at Hitoshi. "Onee-chan doesn't have a boyfriend, bunny. Don't listen to him."_

 _"Oh. Okay. Good, then you can stay with us forever." He murmured, lowering himself back to cuddle to my side._

 _"Of course! I'll always be with you, bunny!" I kiss his forehead and hit play on the remote, deciding not to talk anymore about that subject. So what if Kuon bought me sunglasses? we're friends! Best friends. I gave him a cooling pack when he was beat up and he gave me sunglasses. That's what friends do._

 _"I want Ai-chan to be my girlfriend." Kenzo says after a while, pointing at the TV screen, which now displayed the Junior detective league from the anime. Hitoshi chokes on his chips and I snicker._

 _"And why is that?"_

 _"Because she's pretty and smart and she doesn't like the other kids, so I will be the only one she likes when she becomes my girlfriend."_

 _I look down at him incredulously. My baby brother may have some issues..._

* * *

 **Ch9: Working it out**

 _ **Author's POV**_

"I hate you!" Kyoko yelled, angrily flailing her arms as her red, sweat covered face twisted in pain and exhaustion. She didn't think she could hold on much longer. She never thought she'd be subjected to such torture and certainly not from one of the closest people to her heart.

"Why are you doing this to me?" She cried as her eyes filled with tears. "I thought we were friends."

Kuon rolled his eyes as he blew once again into his whistle before letting it fall from his lips to loosely hang from his neck.

"Come on, you drama queen! They're called jumping jacks, not drunken jacks!"

"Oh, bite me!"

"I've seen kids make _snow angels_ with more enthusiasm!" He shouted as he crossed his arms over his chest, lifting a challenging eyebrow at her.

"Let me introduce you to something called _center of gravity_ , I'll take snow angels over this any day!" She panted.

"Come on, come on Mogami, ten more to go!" He shouted, completely ignoring her.

"Ugh, I really hate you!"

"Yes, you've stated that fact already." He chuckled. "One more time, come on!"

After performing the last few jumps she had left, Kyoko collapsed on the ground of the Hizuris' backyard, eyes tightly shut and chest heaving as she gulped down as much air as she could.

"Nicely done! Here, have some-"

"Amazing, Kyoko-chan! Here's some water for you!" Before Kuon could even finish his sentence, his mother ran up to her and threw herself by her head, offering a bottle of mineral water and a fluffy towel which Kyoko took gratefully.

"Mom! We talked about this, you can't just…" Kuon paused before resuming his sentence in Russian. "steal my thunder every time she's around."

"Heh, shut up." Julie hissed back in the same tongue.

Kyoko who was, by now, used to their antics didn't spare them a glance as she focused on sipping her water instead of gulping it down like she felt compelled to.

"You know this is just a warm up, right?" Kuon stated as she capped her water bottle.

"If you think that I will be doing anything else today mister, you are so wrong." She snorted, longingly looking at Julie's retreating figure, or more like at her destination. She wanted to go inside so bad!

"Hah, nice one! Remember who calls the shots here."

"You're such a bully. I understand now why you insisted on doing this here instead of my place, you knew damn well I'd have people backing me up over there."

"Whatever. You lost a bet and you are honor bound to pay for it."

"Or what? Pistols at dawn Mr. Darcy?" She snickered.

"Gentlemen don't challenge ladies into duels, Miss Elizabeth." He teased back. "Which is why you have to pay by working out like I order you instead."

"You smug little shit, you know damn well that I'll win the next bet and you'll regret it." She snarled, brushing past the fact that he literally just alluded his feelings to her, but this is Kyoko so Kuon was undeterred.

"Sure, do your worst! But meanwhile, give me fifty squats!" He said, clapping his hands before clasping them behind his back.

"Why are you making me do this, anyway? You could literally have asked for anything, _ANYTHING_!" She whined, getting up to her feet.

"Because, you suck at PE." He deadpanned. "And I actually enjoy working out and I'd like to have a partner from now on. Just be grateful I didn't make you go with me on my morning jog."

"If you think that this is gonna be a regular thing, you're dreaming." She huffed, bending her knees and performing yet another agonizing squat.

"We'll see about that."

After another round of complaint-laced exercising and another interruption from Julie, Kuon decided that this wasn't going to work at this pace. He didn't like having his precious time with Kyoko interrupted by his mother thus, he decided to move them to the park, sacrificing the comfort of his own backyard in favor of the peace they'd get there instead. Despite the lack of privacy, there were less chances of interruptions by random strangers.

"Very nice of you to add to my misfortune, Kuon." Kyoko grunted, as she attempted to perform a sit up. _Attempted_ being the keyword here.

"Hmm?"

"Adding embarrassment to physical pain." She huffed, letting herself fall back to the ground. "Not only do I have to go through this torture under the glaring sun, now all these people will witness my struggles." She whimpered throwing an arm over her head, covering her eyes in the process.

"There's literally no one looking at you. Everyone else is too busy worrying about their own muscle burn." He snorted, towering over her.

"You're ruining my spring break! I'm supposed to be having fun, not doing this!"

"Come on, this is fun! We get to spend time together and you get to get in shape!"

"Are you implying that I'm _fat_?" Kyoko glared at him.

"NO. No, of course not. In fact, you can use some more muscle." He said, in a placating voice.

"But I don't _want_ any!"

"Doesn't matter, you're paying your dues for the bet. Now get up and give me some more, I know you can do it if you want to! Remember that school race?"

"Yes, the very first damned bet I made with you and lost."

"That's not what… never mind, just finish up."

"I really hate you."

Kuon sighed.

* * *

For seven-year-old Matsuda Kenzo , life was very simple. He spent his time going to school, playing with his friends and basking in the love of his family. He had lost his mommy a while ago and even though he missed her a lot and is saddened by his memories of her, he also gained a nice Oba-chan and a very pretty and sweet Onee-chan to give him the love and attention he deserves.

For Kenzo-kun, life was very simple. There were things that were his, and things that were not.

His backpack and school things were his.

His toys were his.

His video games were his and his loved ones were his, too.

When Oba-chan first showed up in Kenzo's life, she was very much the same as she is now. Sweet, gentle, pretty, and she always gave him delicious treats. He loved her instantly and decided that she was to be his Oba-chan from then on. It helped that his Otou-san and his Onii-chan liked her too!

And then, he was told that she was going to come and live with them because his Otou-san wanted to marry her.

Kenzo approved; He wanted to see her everyday like his Otou-san and his Onii-chan.

But when she came, she brought with her someone else.

At first, Kenzo thought that the pretty girl who came with Saena Oba-chan looked sad and a little scared, like Futaba-chan when she had first moved to their class but then, he noticed the attention she was getting from his Otou-san and his Onii-chan and the little attention she paid him. Kenzo decided he didn't like her after all. He didn't want her to be his _anything_.

He changed his mind soon enough as he started seeing how nice and funny she was. She made his Onii-chan pout a lot and she didn't try to force him to speak to her like his school principle did. She also liked Detective Conan, and when she told him it was okay for him to play with her action figure he decided that maybe, he wanted her to be his _friend_.

A few days later, he changed his mind again and decided he wanted to keep her forever and since he knew that friends sometimes go away, like when Makoto-kun had to move to Nagoya, he decided that it would be wiser to make her family instead, and so he decided that Kyoko-chan was to be his _Onee-chan_.

Life was, again, very simple for Kenzo-kun. He had his Otou-san and his Oba-chan to take care of him and love him, and he had his Onii-chan and his Onee-chan to play with him and take him to school and cook for him. He loved being at home just as much as he loved playing with his friends. He also loved the time he spent with them in their "chilling space" and how they always included him in their plans. They didn't try to speak in hushed voices around him like Otou-san and Oba-chan did sometimes, and it made him feel like a grown up, because grownups only hide things from _kids_ , he was sure.

However, it also allowed him to overhear some things. His siblings would sometimes speak about other people.

Friends.

They would sometimes tease each other about having people they _like_.

Kenzo knew what _like_ meant, they meant it like how Ayumi-chan likes Conan-kun. A lot of girls said that they liked him at school, but Kenzo didn't care because he already knew that _he_ liked Ai-chan.

The thing is, Kenzo knew that he was too young to have a girlfriend, so he knew that if Onee-chan and Onii-chan get a boyfriend and a girlfriend he'd be left alone, and he didn't want that.

Onee-chan already assured him that she didn't have a boyfriend, so he wasn't worried about that. He was, however, worried about the girl he heard his Onee-chan tease his Onii-chan about. Her name was Kanae. And Kenzo thought that she was _trouble_.

Not only was she Onee-chan's best friend, she was also the girl Onii-chan likes! Kenzo didn't want to share both of them with her, he _only_ shared them both with his father and his Oba-chan! Which is what brought him here. Facing the door of the k-ko-kooto- _ko-to-na-mi_ residence!

Getting here was easy, the hard part was reaching the doorbell. No matter how high he jumped he just couldn't touch it! He waited for a bit, then some more, and finally a tall man walked by and Kenzo politely asked him to ring the doorbell for him.

The lady who opened the door seemed a bit old for his Onii-chan and not young enough to be a high school student.

"Hello, are you Kanae-san?" He asked her with big innocent eyes.

"Oh, my! What a cute little boy!" She cooed, shifting the baby she was holding on her side. "No, I am her big sister, do you want me to call her for you?"

"Yes, please." He smiled. Better at ease now, knowing that this wasn't his rival.

"Come on in." She said before loudly shouting for her sister through the balcony.

Kenzo was ushered to a room in the house, he heard the laughter of other kids coming from the garden but fought back the urge to go and peek.

He only had to wait a bit before a pretty girl that looked to be his Onee-chan's age walked in. He thought he heard her mutter something along the lines of " _As if I wasn't surrounded by enough brats as it is._ " And resisted the urge to pout, introducing himself instead.

Kanae's eyes widened. "Matsuda? Oh! You must be Kyoko's brother."

"That's right, Kyoko is _my_ Onee-chan." He declared proudly.

"Well, what can I do for you Kenzo-kun? Aren't you a little far from home?"

Kenzo schooled his face into a serious expression and said "I will make this very clear, Kanae-san." He steeled himself for what he was about to say next.

"You can't make _my_ Onii-chan yours." Kenzo said, looking her dead in the eye.

Kanae huffed out an incredulous laugh. Did Kyoko's little brother just…?

 _ **"Excuse me?"**_

"Stay away from Onii-chan. Make someone else your boyfriend." And then almost as an afterthought he added "You can stay friends with Onee-chan, though."

Kanae was struggling very hard not to burst out laughing. She was flabbergasted by the words of this little imp. That he would come all this way from his house, alone, was already something but that he would warn her off Matsuda Hitoshi was out of this world. She narrowed her eyes at him before tilting her head to the side and saying

"Kenzo-kun, would you like some cookies and milk?"

Kenzo's face lost its seriousness and morphed into a wide-eyed expression.

"Yes, please."

"Alright, how about I introduce you to my little brothers and sisters? You can play with them while I prepare your snack."

And with that, he was ushered out to the garden and introduced to the Kotonami bunch.

* * *

"HE _WHAT_?!" Kyoko screeched at her phone.

"Calm down!" Kanae said, glaring at her phone which was sitting on the counter on speaker as she stirred sugar and cinnamon into several glasses of milk.

"He's safe, playing with the other brats in the garden. Somehow they warmed up to him pretty quick." She craned her neck to check on said brats from the window. "You can come take him anytime you want."

Once Kyoko wrapped her mind around the fact that her beloved little brother was unharmed in her best friend's house, the matchmaker within took the lead.

"You know what? I don't trust myself to act rationally with that little midget once I see him, I'll have Toshi pick him up instead."

"Wait, Kyoko-"

"Thank you so much, Moko-san! I'll talk to you later!" And with that, she hung up.

Kanae stared at her phone, hand frozen mid stirring motion. Then, she sighed.

* * *

 _A few moments later..._

"MATSUDA HITOSHI! YOU GOOD FOR NOTHING PIECE OF POOP!"

Hitoshi, in all his years, his mischief-packed years, had never been yelled at that way. Especially not when he was enjoying a very pleasant nap.

"Princess…? S'that you?" He croaked.

"Where is Kenzo? Hmm?" His sister's voice impatiently asked. He could practically see her standing there, her weight resting on one foot, as she quickly tapped the other on the floor. One hand resting on her tilted hip.

"He's right over here, we were having a nap after watching…" He turned around, perusing the room for his little brother's slight frame… which was nowhere to be found.

" **SHIT**!"

"Yeah. Exactly." She hissed.

"I swear, he was right here, we were in the basement and… I'll check his room!"

"No need. He's at Kanae's." She said, before coldly adding "Go fetch him." And with that, she hung up the phone in the same manner for the second time that day. She locked her phone and put it inside her sweat pants' pocket before zipping it closed. Her self-satisfied smile was lost at the sound of a snort coming from right beside her.

"What?"

"You're very scary, you know that?" Kuon said, looking at her as he sat on the grass, his arms hanging over his knees.

"I thought we were on the same page?" She glared.

" _I_ thought you decided to stop interfering?" He smirked.

"Whatever. What else do I have to do next in your sadistic list of workouts?" She huffed, uncapping her water bottle.

"We're done for the day, actually." He said, standing up. "How about we go grab something to eat, as a reward for a job well done?"

"You know I'll always say yes to free food, what did you have in mind?" She said, taking the hand he extended to help her to her feet.

"Hmm, sushi? To stay within our healthy theme?" He smiled at her.

"A bit expensive, don't you think?" She arched a brow at him.

"It's alright, I've been doing some extra chores and dad has been preeetty generous." He grinned at her.

"Well, in that case, yes please!" She smiled before stopping abruptly. "I'll need to go to the restroom first though, this is my third bottle." She said, shaking the practically empty bottle of mineral water before shoving it to his chest and running towards the public restroom. Kuon lazily followed behind.

* * *

"Hey, how are-"

"I'm so sorry! I don't even _know_ how I didn't hear him leave the house!" Hitoshi said, cutting Kanae's greeting. He was leaning against his car parked two feet from Kanae's doorway, fidgeting with his keys and looking apologetic.

"He didn't give you a hard time, did he?"

"Uhmm, no. Come inside, he's having a snack with the kids." She stepped aside, inviting him in.

Not wanting to interrupt Kenzo while he ate, Kanae fixed them both a snack of their own, tea and biscuits, while they silently watched the group of children assembled on the porch around a tray of treats.

"Are you gonna tell me what he came here for?" He said, smiling slightly as he glanced sideways at her.

She made a show of sipping from her cup and breaking her biscuit into little bits before answering him.

"He was here to tell me to stay away from you." Despite wanting to keep a straight face, her voice broke out into an amused little chuckle at the end of her statement.

"He… wha-" Hitoshi thanked god he had finished his cup of tea before asking her or else he was sure he'd be choking on the beverage at that moment.

"He said I can't make you mine." She smiled down at the plate of biscuits.

"I… it's actually… listen," He held his hands up, as if trying to slow the pace of their discussion. "Kenzo has this thing where he sees people as, erm… " _His_ ", I know it sounds messed up, but he's just a kid…" He cleared his throat, wincing as he tried to make sense of where he was going with this. "I… it was the same when princess first came, he felt sort of threatened and uh, he would probably have told her the same thing if he weren't afraid Otou-san would scold him…"

Kanae smiled and looked up at him. "Except he's never met me before. I'm surprised he even knows I exist."

"Well… yeah, I suppose you're right…" He frowned looking at his little brother who was happily munching on a cookie.

After a while, when the children had finished eating the food and started scattering through the garden again, Kanae spoke as she escorted Hitoshi outside to his little brother.

"Maybe we should ask him."

"Huh?"

"About why he told me to back off." She slyly grinned up at him.

"Oh."

"Onii-chan!" Kenzo shrieked as he ran up to his brother.

"Hey buddy! Having fun?"

"Yes! I made a lot of friends!"

"That's great! Did you thank Kanae-san for her hospitality?" Hitoshi said, lightly gripping Kenzo by the shoulders.

"Yes!"

Hitoshi looked up at Kanae to confirm and she nodded yes.

"Good." He took a breath before speaking again, not looking forward to scolding his pampered little brother. "You know what _wasn't_ very good of you, though, right?" At Kenzo's sheepish expression her went on. "You shouldn't have left the house on your own. We talked about this."

Kenzo meekly nodded his head, looking down at his shoes.

"Why did you come here, kiddo?" Hitoshi sighed and Kanae was moved by this display of brotherly affection. Reprimands were never delivered so gently in her household. They were all about doing it the loud way.

"To tell Kanae-san that you can't be her boyfriend." He muttered with pouty lips.

Hitoshi struggled to keep his composure. Had he looked up at Kanae at that moment, he would have found her sporting a blush as bright as the one on his cheeks.

"What makes you think Kanae-san would want me to be her boyfriend, Kenzo?" He forced himself to say.

"I don't know about her, but I heard Onee-chan saying that you bought her sunglasses and I thought that you-"

"Oookay…" Hitoshi laughed nervously. "Uhm, and, uh, how did you get her address?"

"I once heard Oba-chan ask Onee-chan for her friend's number in case she couldn't reach her phone and I knew that she had it. I got the number from her phone last night when I was playing games on it and then I used the phone book. I used my allowance to pay the taxi driver though, I swear I didn't take any from Oba-chan's purse."

"Wow…" Was all Hitoshi could say, flabbergasted.

Before his older brother got his wits about him, Kenzo looked up to meet Kanae in the eye and said "You don't want him to be your boyfriend, do you? He's actually very gross sometimes, his socks smell and one day he went to sleep without brushing his teeth and-"

"Hey, hey, I think she got the picture, kiddo!" The elder brother said. He looked up at his crush to find her shaking with silent laughter.

Kenzo, not appreciating the interruption pouted and looked angrily down, fixing his eyes on his shoes yet again.

Hitoshi sighed, coming to terms with his embarrassment. "Why don't you go say goodbye to your friends before we head home, buddy?"

Kenzo nodded and scurried back to the group of children noisily running around the garden in a game of tag.

The elder Matsuda brother could only clear his throat awkwardly as he stood next to Kanae, who after a moment decided to speak. "How naughty of you to not brush your teeth before bed. Tsk, tsk."

"That was one time!"

At that response, Kanae broke into a fit of laughter and he soon followed.

As Hitoshi secured Kenzo's seat belt and walked over to the driver's seat, Kanae called up to him from her position at the doorway.

"Hey, Matsuda!" When he looked up from opening his door she said "Thanks for the glasses!"

* * *

"I didn't realize it was so late! We didn't even have lunch!" Kyoko complained as they sat in a booth. She was surprised to find Kappa Sushi uncharacteristically empty. Though it was by no means a fancy restaurant, she had been a bit embarrassed at the thought of going there in sportswear, Kuon didn't care of course, and now she understood better why.

"To be honest, I didn't realize it either. I was so caught up in our little routine, I lost track of time." He smiled apologetically. "Good thing that I'm making it up to you, right?"

"Yeah, whatever."

They sat at a booth and discussed what to get, Kyoko wanting to make sure that Kuon could afford it and Kuon assuring her that he could.

When they had their orders, Kyoko happily ate and chattered, finally assuaged by the tasty food while Kuon watched her with a wide smile. They thought nothing of lingering there after their meal was eaten since it wasn't exactly rush hour and so they took advantage of the opportunity to be in each other's company a bit more before they had to part for the day. They _were_ , however, surprised when a waiter brought a pot of pudding and set it in front of Kyoko.

"I didn't order this." She said, smiling up at him.

"A costumer ordered this for you before leaving." He answered with a wink before retreating.

She frowned, looking up from the little cup to find Kuon mirroring her expression, though whether it was at the waiter's wink or the fact that she was treated by a stranger was unclear.

"Don't eat it, I'll order you one instead."

"Oh? What's so wrong about this one?" She innocently asked.

Kuon, used to her antics, immediately knew that she was teasing him. "Kyoko." He grunted.

"Are you jealous?" She asks, making him squirm in his seat, not expecting her to put it so bluntly. "Because you didn't get one too?"

He rolled his eyes, shoulders relaxing. "Do you really wanna encourage the creep who sent you this by eating it? He could be lingering around for all you know."

"Hmm? I don't know, it wouldn't be that bad to have an admirer, would it?"

He bitterly huffed out a laugh, shaking his head at her words. Knowing that she's just kidding didn't make it less annoying. "Let me order you another one, this way you can boast about having _two_ admirers."

He was about to raise his hand to signal the waiter when she put hers over it.

"No need. I won't eat it. I don't even want to." She sighed, turning melancholy for a second. "It brings back bad memories." When he was about to ask what she meant she got up and stretched. "We should leave."

Getting the hint that she didn't want to talk about it, he settled the bill and off they went.

When they reached her home, he reminded her about their online game that evening.

"I'll win this time and make you regret what you made me go through today!" She threatened.

"I thought I settled that score with sushi." He laughed.

"Hmm… Maybe I'll have mercy on your soul." She said before going inside.

* * *

 **A/N: I just want to say, the closes thing I do to working out is walking around campus and I've gone swimming for like three times xD so I'm not sure if fifty squats is a normal amount for a beginner, don't grill me on that please XD Do grill me on the rest of the chapter though! In the reviews!**

 **Kris:** Thank you! You're very sweet and you're right, coding can be really fun when done with the right people, my workload was … well, I had to do everything alone so it wasn't that great XD But! I got through the year and that's all that matters! I'm very happy you had fun with the last chapter, even though it was posted like eight months ago XD Thanks for the review!

 **Michiyo:** (I know we're talking on tumblr but I'mma answer your review anyway XD) I HONESTLY BELIEVE THAT THE POST CREDITS SCENE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART XDDDDD And omg so much time has passed, I take it you watched Thor Ragnarock because I did AND BOY WAS IT GOOD! Black Panther was amazing too! Will have to watch Infinity War soon XD Thank you so much for your sweet words and your support, they warm my heart I hope you'll enjoy this chapter! Thanks for reviewing! PS: Thank you so much for the second review and for your reassurance, your continued support really melts my heart :'D

 **Paulagato:** Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed that chapter and YES those four need to start making some progress regarding their relationship status lol Thanks a lot for the review, hope this chapter will be to your liking!

 **Erza:** Heyo! Yes, I'm fine now, I got better lol Well, according to the doctor, it was caused by various things: sleeping position, bad posture, using my phone and laptop all the time and even the lack of exercising XD Thank you! I'm really overjoyed that you had fun reading that chapter! And I ADORE YOU! It really means a lot that I remind you of someone so close to you and know that I feel the same, you mean the world to me and I enjoy our PMs! Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well! Thanks for the sweet review! XOXO Edit: LMAO your second review killed me XDDDDDDDDD Well, here's your update my dear! Fangirl away and tell me all about it XD

 **Amy:** Thank you so, so much! Your support means the world to me! I'm so glad to have such sweet, understanding people reading my work I'm very happy you enjoyed that chapter, hope this one was just as fun to read! Thank you for the review!

 **RenxKyoko:** Well… way to kill me with your words! I am so flattered! Thank you so much! Half of the time I don't know what I'm doing and the other half is spent second guessing everything I've ever posted so reviews like yours MAKE MY DAY! I'll strive to live up to your praise! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, thank you so much for the review!

 **Guest1:** Sorry for taking so long xD Here's the update! Like it? XD So sweet of you to say that, I'm glad you like it that much! Thank you for the review!

 **Guest2:** Hey! I'm so happy because of what you said, thank you so much for your support! Of course I want to continue this story! And I'm happy to know that you guys are still out there and want more of it! Thanks a lot for the well-wishes and I hope you enjoyed this update! Thanks for leaving me a review!


End file.
